A spokesman for the police department in Calgary has expressed "grave concern" over the impending release of Grand Theft Auto IV.

According to a report in today's Calgary Sun:

City cops are warning parents to be careful about exposing children to video game violence, saying it's a possible training ground for criminal endeavours.

The newspaper quotes Calgary police spokesman Kevin Brookwell:

From the Calgary Police Service perspective, we see these types of video games as a grave concern... Because of the lack of consequences and even reward -- (youth) don't understand the impact violence can have.

In some cases, those very games may be training grounds for people to commit criminal activity.

Deadline Hollywood Daily has posted detailed comments about GTA IV from video game IP expert Keith Boesky, who sees the game as a cultural milestone:

GTA is violent, but like the movies, the violence is a reflection of our time... The game is a fantasy, it is ok to pretend...

Games are constantly being attacked for sex and violence - even though we have none of the first, and strictly control the second. Politicians, media, parents and crazy lawyers all attack the industry with a broad brush, sweeping kids together with adults... The industry is diverse enough to accommodate Mario and [Metal Gear Solid's] Snake Plisken but the media and politicians still portray our market as one for children...  

I am not delusional. I know there are ultra violent games out there. I played the snuff film called Manhunt and saw the... scene from Postal where the player lights someone on fire and pees on them, but these games just don't sell in volume... Like any other media, violence alone will not sell games. The game must be good...

Grand Theft Auto IV, the most controversial game of the year, should not be so controversial, according to Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser (left). Houser also termed video game critics as Luddites.

GameSpot reports on comments made by Houser to ShortList, including:

The 'controversy' story gets a bit frustrating... if this was a movie, a book, or a TV show, we wouldn't be having this conversation. We're an easy enemy to divert everyone's attention from the stuff that really matters.

There's an argument that video games have caused this massive upsurge in youth violence--they haven't, it's actually gone down. So it's got nothing to do with the content; it's to do with the medium. The problem is that video games aren't the medium [of politicians and tabloid journalists]. Well, that's just a social change, and you're a Luddite if you challenge that.

California Sen. Leland Yee (D), the architect of his state's contested video game law, has weighed in on the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV release.

Sen. Yee issued a press release this afternoon warning parents that the M-rated game is not meant for children:

It is imperative that parents avoid purchasing this game for their children and always review the video games their children are playing.

Unfortunately, the makers of Grand Theft Auto have a history of deceiving the ratings board and the public on the true content of their games.  Parents beware: this game undoubtedly glorifies violence, is extremely realistic and designed for adults only.

Yee cited the 2005 Hot Coffee scandal in his release as well as the Federal Trade Commission's most recent secret shopper data, which indicated that, nationally, underage buyers were successful in purchasing M-rated games 42% of the time. 

With Grand Theft Auto IV critics claiming that Rockstar's controversial new release will corrupt America's youth, Minusworld is having a bit of fun with a parody feature detailing a GTA IV activity and coloring book for kids.

Given the amount of misinformation bandied about concerning video games (e.g., virtual rape), we wonder whether this satire will eventually find its way into the various claims of how "depraved" GTA is:

They say GTA IV isn't for kids, but there's even a coloring book...

Jack Thompson, Fox News and the Chicago Transit Authority want to ban bus ads for Grand Theft Auto IV.

But these multi-story ads adorn the graceful Hotel Figueroa in downtown Los Angeles and, somehow, the republic still stands...

Via: Xbox 360 Fanboy

Kotaku is reporting that the PAL version of GTA IV for the Xbox 360 may have been leaked:

At around 11:50am Greenwich Mean Time, the PAL version of Grand Theft Auto IV for the Xbox 360 was ripped and leaked to various torrent sites by a [group] called iCON...

YouTube clips have been popping up online of the game's opening and early missions — but as of posting, many of the clips have been taken down. The retail release is a mere six days away. This isn't the first GTA game leaked as San Andreas was as well. And it was leaked a week before, too.

GP readers may recall that Manhunt 2 was leaked by an SCEE employee last September.

UPDATE: The Telegraph has a bit more...

On the side of a bus kiosk in South Florida, there is a poster.

On the poster is a drawing of a man. The man is sneering, but he's not doing anything remotely pornographic or violent. He's not doing anything, really. There are some words on the poster, too. They're not obscene. Nor do they incite violence.

The poster is an ad for Grand Theft Auto IV.

And anti-game Miami attorney Jack Thompson wants it torn down.

Thompson, a long time critic of the Grand Theft Auto series, apparently took note of Monday's GamePolitics report detailing the Chicago Transit Authority's removal of GTA IV ads from its buses and facilities. In an e-mail sent today to Miami Mayor Carlos Alvarez, Thompson, who took the picture that accompanies this article, writes:

I was shocked today to see a six-foot-high advertisement for Grand Theft Auto IV, a hyperviolent video game... on the side of a Metro Miami-Dade bus stop located... near Children’s Hospital.  In fact, the advertisement was adjacent to a kids’ park...

The Grand Theft Auto games have been obsessively played by a number of teens who have then copycatted the outrageous, sociopathic violence in the games and killed innocent people...

The ESRB descriptor on GTA IV indicates this game contains “Strong Sexual Content.”  The sale of this game to any minor will constitute a criminal act violative of... Florida’s “Sexual Material Harmful to Minors Law”...

There are also several paragraphs of Thompson's standard I've been on 60 Minutes with Ed Bradley... GTA is cop killer game... etc, etc, etc...

GP: It will be interesting to see how the mayor reacts. And how the game industry will respond to any potential order to remove the ads. From here, any such action by the mayor's office or the quasi-governmental transit company would seem to be a First Amendment violation.

While the game biz has passively rolled over and accepted past removals of GTA ads from transit vehicles in Boston, Portland and now Chicago, it's about time they made a stand on this issue.

Allowing attention-hungry critics or mayors or transit agencies to force the removal of an ad with no offensive content is not only a free speech violation, but it demonizes GTA IV and, by extension, demonizes the millions of gamers who will be playing the game when it launches next week. 

As we have pointed out, the 1st US Circuit Court ruled in Change the Climate vs. Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority that bus company censorship of ads based on viewpoint is unconstitutional.

With the Grand Theft Auto IV launch less than a week away, the expected wave of anti-GTA publicity continues with an alert issued by watchdog group the Parents Television Council.

According to PTC president Tim Winter:

Since the first version was released in 1997, the Grand Theft Auto series has lowered the bar for appalling video game content...

In past versions, players could re-enact having sex with a prostitute, beating her bloody, taking her money and running her over with a car; shooting at police officers; and, by using a code easily accessible on many internet sites, having a realistic sexual encounter on screen -- complete with audio commentary.

In the alert, PTC urges its members to pressure retailers not to carry GTA IV. Or, if retailers do choose to stock the game, PTC suggest that it be displayed where minors will not see it. Apparently concerned about another Hot Coffee situation, the PTC has also called upon retailers to:

...insist that Take Two... and the [ESRB] actually review all playable content before issuing a rating for the game. Given Take-Two Interactive's reckless or intentional misleading of the ESRB and ESRB’s failure to respond quickly in the aftermath of the “hot coffee” mod fiasco... retailers must be reassured, in writing, that the rating given the game is accurate and that there is no hidden or modifiable content in the game.

GP: While it is inevitable that GTA IV will be scrutinized carefully for any Hot Coffee redux, PTC oversteps by suggesting that content not be modifiable. There is an active GTA mod community just waiting to tinker with GTA IV. In fact, it was the mod community which revealed (but did not create) Hot Coffee in the first place.

The PTC alert also references the uproven theories of serial video game critic Dave Grossman.

Everyone who follows the video game scene knows that the controversial Grand Theft Auto series is rated M, for players 17 and older. So how do kids get their hands on GTA?

With Grand Theft Auto IV launching in one week, it's a timely question. Critics often charge that the video game industry doesn't enforce its own rating system at point of sale.

But MTV Multiplayer's Tracey John has interviewed three under-17 gamers who played GTA. In two cases, the parents purchased the controversial game for the young men with full knowledge of its rating and content. The third teen acquired GTA San Andreas via an unspecified game trading website. That gamer, a 15-year-old Maryland resident named Sean, said:

[My parents] would probably be more upset that I didn’t listen to them first, and about the content second. In my defense, I feel that going to high school has prepared me for the content in M-rated games.

Eric, a 17-year-old from Ontario told MTV: 

It was the same process as buying any other game. I’d just get it — the rating never worried or bothered my parents ’cause I guess [they thought] I could always distinguish the difference between the whack stuff in the games and reality.

As police and city officials in Chicago deal with a rash of recent shooting incidents, the local Fox News affiliate has questioned the posting of ads for Grand Theft Auto IV on buses and buildings of the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA).

And, just like that, CTA president Ron Huberman folded on the issue, telling Fox News through a representative that the ads would be removed.

It's not the first time that Chicago's buses have provided the setting for a GTA controversy. In 2004 Gov. Rod Blagojevich railed against transit ads for GTA San Andreas.

Over the years, GTA transit ads have come under fire in other cities as well. In 2006 Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and others forced the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) to pull ads for GTA Vice City Stories. The transit chief there justified his decision by issuing a policy which equates M-rated games with X-rated movies.

In the past, GTA bus ads have also come under fire in Portland, Oregon and Denver.

GamePolitics is awaiting comment from GTA IV publisher Take Two Interactive. We also sought comment from the ESA, which referred us back to T2.

GP: The GTA IV transit ads shown by Fox News depict neither violence nor sex. Does the CTA reject ads for R-rated movies? Suggestive or violent television programs?

As I've written before, the video game industry needs to assert its First Amendment rights in these cases, which essentially come down to selective censorship by quasi-governmental entities.

UPDATE: I should add that in 2003 a group called Change the Climate successfully sued the MBTA when it refused to run ads calling for a debate on marijuana laws. In that case, the U.S. First Circuit Court held that:

There is direct evidence through statements made by MBTA officials that the reason for rejecting the advertisements was actually a distaste for Change the Climate's viewpoint.

This suspicion of viewpoint discrimination is deepened by the fact that the MBTA has run a number of ads promoting alcohol that are clearly more appealing to juveniles than the ads here.

Some interesting results from the T2 shareholder meeting:

First, from a T2 source, GamePolitics has learned that the controversial compensation package sought by chairman Strauss Zelnick (left) and his management team was approved by a 73% shareholder margin. What effect this will have on the EA bid remains to be seen. We should know more on Friday.

From a game standpoint, Zelnick let slip that T2 has already seen some of the reviews for GTA IV. Although he didn't specify the publications involved, he did say that all of the reviews were perfect scores:

We've already received numerous [GTA IV] reviews, and to a one, they are perfect scores. My mom couldn't write better reviews...

It's no surprise that GTA IV is garnering great reviews, as all previous major GTA releases have as well. It is interesting that the reviews are apparently flawless - not to mention that Zelnick has revealed this information ahead of time.

Of the shareholder affirmation of his compensation package, Zelnick said later, via press release:

Today’s vote demonstrates stockholders’ confidence in management and the Board of Directors of Take-Two. The Board and management remain committed to acting in the best interests of stockholders. We are confident in the significant growth potential of Take-Two and in the unique value of our business given our strong position in this dynamic industry.

In other meeting business, Zelnick declined to say whether he had signed a confidentiality agreement (presumably with EA) and also wouldn't comment on today's report that the Federal Trade Commission is requesting additional data on any potential EA-T2 merger.

Sucks to be an Australian Grand Theft Auto fan these days.

Not only will GTA IV be watered down in order to bypass government censorship Down Under, but fans will pay more for the lessened experience.

Naturally, game consumers are finding a way to get a better, fairer deal - and perhaps a bit of revenge - by importing non-Aussie versions of the game. As the Syndey Morning Herald reports:

Many Australian gamers have cancelled their [GTA IV] orders.

Already angered by the price of the blockbuster in Australia - $120 compared to $US60 ($64) in North America - gamers have reacted with outrage to news... that developer Rockstar has edited the game for Australia in order to obtain an MA15+ rating.

Many gamers said they cancelled their orders with Australian shops and will import a cheaper, uncut version, flouting the law.

UPDATE: A Take Two rep has reached out to GP to say that the information in the rumor below is absolutely not correct....

Recently, GamePolitics and other outlets reported that, in order to clear their government's notorious video game censorship, Australian gamers would be receiving a somewhat watered-down version of Grand Theft Auto IV.

Kotaku has posted some unconfirmed information on what may have been chopped from the game, reprinting a claim that has been making the rounds on message boards:

In regards to what Rockstar have removed for the Australian release, as far as we're aware there was only one sexually violent cut-scene which Rockstar felt would cause the game to be Refused Classification.

Unfortunately we're not able to go into specifics until after the game has been released but I can tell you that the scene involves a weapon being inserted into an enemies private area during a mission where Niko is taking revenge after one of his close friends was forced into sexual intercourse during his stay in prison.

With the GTA IV release now less than two weeks away, we'll know soon enough whether this is the real story...

Pardon us if for perhaps stating the obvious, but USA Today's Marc Saltzman lays out the controversial aspects of the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV.

And while the critics have been laying low thus far, we anticipate that the game will doubtless be the subject of much scrutiny when it launches on April 29th. Saltzman writes:

Not unlike previous GTA games, Grand Theft Auto IV will ruffle feathers among concerned parents, politicians and activists. You still can kill police, but it's wiser to avoid these shootouts because if you're arrested, you'll lose all your money and weapons and fail the mission. Though they'll try to jump out of the way, you also can drive into pedestrians.

Players can again proposition prostitutes to get a "health boost." Exotic pole dancers are in the game — but there is no nudity, nor is there a hidden sex mini-game, à la "Hot Coffee," which landed the game publisher in hot water in the past.

You also can drink and drive in this game, and if you choose to go out partying with friends, at the end of the night you can walk home, hail a cab or drive; if you drive, your vision is blurred, making it harder to control the vehicle.

Finally, GTA IV contains plenty of foul language. In short, heed the "Mature" rating on the box. It's not appropriate for players under 17.

Oft-quoted Wedbush-Morgan analyst Michael Pachter (left) speculates that an EA acquisition of Take-Two could delay the much-anticipated April 29th release of Grand Theft Auto IV.

According to Joystiq, which cites a Bonus Round TV appearance, Pachter said:

I think if EA takes over Take-Two, they have an economic incentive to delay [Grand Theft Auto IV]... Take-Two, financially, has to get that game out ... they need the money. They need to get it out.

As Pachter speculates, EA might want to delay GTA IV into the holiday season to pump up its bottom line. 

GP: Pachter, for whom we've got the utmost respect, is way off base with this one. For starters, delaying GTA IV for six months simply to tweak the 4th quarter numbers would alienate legions of anxious GTA fans and signal a very poor start to the relationship between EA and Rockstar's edgy content.

And, frankly, EA gains an added benefit by letting GTA IV launch as planned. The company can dodge any negative political attention directed at GTA IV by simply pointing out that Take Two already had the game in the pipeline.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Grand Theft Auto IV, due for April 29th release, has been edited to satisfy Australian censors. Jason Hill of the SMH writes:

A Rockstar spokesperson confirmed to Screen Play yesterday that the company had produced a special version of GTA IV to comply with the Australian classification system, which does not currently contain an R18+ rating, but declined to reveal what material had been cut...

The Grand Theft Auto series has a chequered past with the OFLC in Australia. In 2001, thousands of copies of GTA III were sold before the game was rated and refused classification because players could pick-up prostitutes. An edited version was later released. 2002's Gran Theft Auto: Vice City was also edited for Australian audiences.

Via: GamesIndustry.biz

In today's Boston Globe, columnist Alex Beam zings Rockstar Games and the Grand Theft Auto series:

What if there was one day a year when people all over the world decided to behave in a manner worthy of the species? What would they call that day?

...It's bracing to imagine the day when video-game manufacturer Rockstar announces: "We don't want to make money off a game that encourages elementary school students to kill 'hos' and assassinate grand jury witnesses. We're taking Grand Theft Auto off the market."

...What if there were one day a year when everyone behaved in a manner worthy of the species? What would they call that day? They would call it April Fools' Day.

The Massachusetts Legislature, of course, is currently considering a proposal which would treat violent video games in a manner similar to pornography.

So GP got this e-mail last evening from the Hillary Clinton campaign. It ran under the headline:

Liberty City Democratic Club Endorses Hillary Clinton

Wait, we thought.. That can't be right. Hillary is most game-legislating of all the presidential candidates and Liberty City, well, that's Grand Theft Auto territory.

As it turns out, this Liberty City group is a political club for the LGBT community in Pennsylvania, where the April 22nd primary is looking more and more like a make-or-break situation for Clinton and opponent Barack Obama.

UPDATE: I've been thinking... GTA IV launches in a month. Hillary has had a lot to say about GTA in the past, especially in regard to Hot Coffee. April Fool's Day is next Tuesday. Still, the group's website looks legit and so does its domain registration. What do you think, GP readers?

Hot off the wires...

Take-Two (TTWO) has issued a press release in which it recommends that company shareholders reject a $26 tender offer by would-be acquirer Electronic Arts (ERTS). The EA bid is termed "inadequate in multiple respects and contrary to the best interests of Take-Two’s stockholders."

The release also claims that T2 will begin a "review of stragetic alternatives" following the April 29th release of Grand Theft Auto IV:

The Company has received indications of interest from third parties with respect to possible business combination transactions [i.e., mergers]... but no substantive discussions have yet occurred... Prior to the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, the Company is willing to enter into confidentiality agreements on customary terms and to engage in preliminary conversations with interested parties, including EA.   

Chairman Strauss Zelnick is quoted in the press release:

Take-Two’s Board of Directors and senior management team were put in place less than one year ago with one mandate: maximize stockholder value.  We have maintained a single-minded focus on that goal ever since and it remains the guiding principle in every decision we make with regard to Take-Two.  Our Board, after careful review, has unanimously determined that Electronic Arts’ offer continues to provide insufficient value and remains opportunistically timed to capture the value of the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV launch at the expense of our stockholders.

An article in today's New York Post quotes Goldman Sachs analyst Mark Wienkes:

We believe [EA's] shares already incorporate a modest bump. We think its rational to expect a higher bid.

Webdush-Morgan analyst Michael Pachter suggested T2 consider peace talks:

If Take-Two approaches EA about how to make this a friendly deal, they have a chance at getting EA to increase its bid.

Meanwhile, Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia foresees only a small bump in EA's offer price:

We see EA eventually raising the bid, but only slightly. . . $1 or $2.

A unnamed blogger who teaches in a Brooklyn public high school sees racial bias in the ultra-popular Grand Theft Auto series - even though he claims to be a fan.

Big Smoke Street Corner touches on the writer's view of racial stereotyping in GTA as part of a larger discussion on race, language and perceptions:

[GTA's] main audience is clearly suburban white males... [the various GTA games] are praying [sic] on the idea of crime-ridden ultra-violent cesspools run mainly by thoroughly corrupt ethnic minorities...

Having played pretty much the entire series (being, sadly, the resolute gamer I am)... I can not remember a single positive image for Blacks, Mexicans, Cubans, Jamaicans, Colombians, Haitians, Italians, Puerto Ricans, Chinese, Japanese, one Jewish lawyer (!) and soon in the upcoming game, Russians and Serbians; not to mention the constant lampooning of liberals and homosexuals. Mind you, of course, there are never any white gangs...

Rockstar Games...  most common excuse for this insipid behavior is that, because their constant use of stereotypes is so widespread, they cannot be faulted as being racist at any one ethnicity. It’s an equal-opportunity putdown for all!

Aside from the April Fool's jokes (our fave: Lego Halo), the latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly offers a massive - and genuine - preview of Grand Theft Auto IV. The highly-anticipated game, of course, is due to launch on April 29th.

While we don't believe the GTA feature is officially available online, page scans have been posted here and there, inlcuding EGM's interview with Patrick Wildenborg, the Dutch modder who discovered the hidden sex animations which blew the lid off the 2005 Hot Coffee scandal.

When Hot Coffee broke, of course, it was GamePolitics which provided a platform for PatrickW to get his story out, even as some creepy Take Two and Rockstar execs were trying to blame the GTA mod community for creating the racy content. From the EGM interview:

It's a strange feeling to find e-mails from all the major news companies in your mail box... luckily it didn't have any lasting negative effect... We [in the modding community] never anticipated how this thing was going to be blown out of proportion by the mainstream media and the politicians...

I'm still proud of finding and uncovering the [Hot Coffee] scenes - because of all the work and research it took... When I look back at it, I think [Rockstar] should have reacted differently, but I don't hold a grudge at all.

Patrick is still active in the GTA mod community, but told EGM he doesn't expect to find anything similar in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Gamers and parents of gamers will likely find Dr. Cheryl Olson's new book reassuring.

The Massachusetts General Hospital researcher contradicts much of the standard research on video game violence, offering a real-world approach based on studies of real children. With Grand Theft Childhood (co-authored with Dr. Laurence Kutner) set to release in April, Olson spoke with GameCouch's Terry Bosky:

From the start, our research was designed with parents in mind... we wanted to help parents and policymakers understand what’s normal, when to worry about violent video games, and when video games might benefit some kids.

Olson believes that some of the best-known studies have serious flaws:

The most-publicized studies came from a small group of experimental psychologists, studying college students playing nonviolent or violent games for 15 minutes. It’s debatable whether those studies are relevant to real children, playing self-selected games for their own reasons...

Also, the most-published researchers have built their careers around media violence... [that is] just a small part of what we do, so we could look at the issue with fresh eyes and no agenda.

Olson found that games helped 12-14's sort out their feelings:

This included playing games to “help get my anger out,” to forget problems, to relax, and to feel less lonely... When we began our research, we didn’t fully grasp how politicized and emotional this topic was.

What about the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV ?

One of the most surprising things in our research was how many kids aged 12 to 14 are playing Grand Theft Auto games; the series was #1 among boys, and #2 among girls. So, parents can assume that their teens will play GTA IV sometime, someplace...

We found is that most children who play GTA don’t see the characters as role models, and don’t see the game as like real life. In fact, the “unreality” is one thing they like about the series. They can test boundaries and try things that, as one boy put it, “hopefully, will never happen to you.

Don't miss the full interview at GameCouch.

Given Jack Thompson's current screeching that the NIU rampage killer "trained" on violent video games, a recent article on Gaming Steve seems quite timely.

Author Robert Gauss begins by describing his expertise:

I’ve been working with simulator programs for the US Army for about six years now, which I believe makes me an expert on exactly what a simulator is, what a simulation does, and what the goals of these simulators [are]...

Gauss specifically addresses the Grand Theft Auto series, but his points apply to aspects of other controversial games as well:

"Simulators" are devices used to mimic the actions and functions of a real thing, a real situation, or both... and usually involves some sort of realistic motion...

How well does GTA simulate murder? Just even a cursory look can see how GTA fails this test: Everything is presented via a 3rd person view... weapons auto-load and auto-aim... computer people mostly walk and drive around aimlessly and helplessly... computer people don't... act in a realistic manner when attacked... bodies disappear and respawn — hardly like murder if they keep coming back to life

Our "gang games" mentioned above do not even represent murder, but rather a cartoony environment... It’s not just unfair to call Grand Theft Auto a “murder simulator," it is laughably incorrect...

Rockstar VP Dan Houser (left) expects Grand Theft Auto IV to be controversial when it launches on April 29th.

No surprise there.

Houser told the Associated Press:

I expect [controversy] because we’ve had so much of it in the past. I wish people would treat video games the same as other media. They seem to not want to do that for reasons that I don’t understand. It’s a convenient enemy for people.

Indeed, the GTA series has long been the lightning rod for watchdogs of game content. Frequent Rockstar critic Jack Thompson has already indicated that he is gearing up to take on GTA IV:

Thompson will, in the days and weeks ahead, be contacting state and federal officials to stop the improper sales of Grand Theft Auto IV to anyone under seventeen years of age...

Last week's announcement that the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto IV would be released on April 29th did not escape the notice of Miami attorney Jack Thompson.

The anti-game activist, who has been abnormally subdued since the conclusion of his Florida Bar trial last month, issued an e-mail on Thursday threatening unspecified legal and political mayhem for Take Two when GTA IV launches. Thompson, of course, has a contentious legal history with Take Two and its Rockstar subsidiary.

The controversial barrister's predictions of dire consequences were typically vague:

Take-Two shares have jumped approximately 12% today on this news.  What the market is not factoring in, however, is the downside risk coming Take-Two’s way with the sale of this “Mature” game to kids, which is a murder simulator for violence against women, cops, and innocent bystanders...

Thompson will, in the days and weeks ahead, be contacting state and federal officials to stop the improper sales of Grand Theft Auto IV to anyone under seventeen years of age, as any such sales violate state and federal fraudulent and deceptive trade practices statutes. 

Indeed, Thompson has today contacted Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, who has supported Thompson’s efforts in the past.

GP: Actually, we have to wonder how inclined McCollum will be to support Thompson. The Florida A.G.'s deputies have been obligated of late to put in hours defending the Florida Supreme Court and Judge Dava Tunis, referee of Thompson's Bar trial, against Thompson in federal court.

Judge Tunis, by the way, is conducting a review of transcripts and documents from Thompson's December trial. A ruling - which could affect Thompson's status as a licensed attorney - is expected by spring. Wouldn't it be fascinating if the decision came down on the same day that GTA IV released?

Fans of the Grand Theft Auto series are eagerly awaiting GTA IV, due out for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 later this year.

The latest installment in the controversial game franchise is set in Liberty City, a vitualized representation of the Big Apple.

But as today's New York Times reports, the borough of Staten Island has been left out of the game. And while some gamers are upset, at least one New York politician is pleased:
 

Not everyone, however, is bemoaning the exclusion of the city’s most bucolic borough. The Grand Theft Auto series has been widely pilloried by parents and elected officials. The State Senate recently formed a task force on video game violence and appointed Senator Andrew Lanza [left], Republican of Staten Island, to lead it.

 

“I’m glad Staten Island is left out, frankly,” Mr. Lanza said. Describing the game as “poisonous,” he reflected on the real reason his borough did not make the cut.

 

“Perhaps it’s because they know Staten Island is the safest place in the entire city,” he said.