OK, a quick show of hands: How many people called in sick today (cough, cough)? If early reports are any indication, a sudden wave of Grand Theft Auto-itis swept the globe last night as eager gamers stayed up late — or never went to bed at all — to explore the rich graphics, extensive soundtrack, and detailed story in Rockstar North’s latest installment.
Although exact opening sales figures will not be announced for a few days, there is every indication that Grand Theft Auto IV is on track to smash the existing first-week sales record, currently held by Microsoft’s much-hyped Halo 3. Released last September, Halo 3 generated $170 million in sales in the first 24 hours and $300 million by the end of the first week.
Game critics have been overwhelmingly enthusiastic about GTA IV. The video game has a near-perfect rating on the Web site Metacritic.com, which summarizes reviews for different types of media. While noting the inherent violence of the game, critics have praised the sophistication and detail of the story, in some cases likening it to films like The Godfather and Goodfellas.
Douglas Gentile, director of research for the National Institute on Media and the Family, said consumers are consciously seeking out entertainment like GTA IV. “We want media to affect us,” Gentile said. “But as we become more used to it, we get more jaded, and seek out even more stimulating media. So … we seek it out, it affects us, we seek it out more, and it affects us more.”
One market sector clearly not jaded by video games is the music industry. One of the features of GTA IV that has drawn the most attention is its extensive soundtrack. The game features hours of music from a wide variety of genres, including jazz,…