For those of you who haven’t played Grand Theft Auto IV yet (as ridiculous as it sounds there are a few people) or you’ve been waiting to play it on your PC then you’re about to become a happy chappy. Yesterday Rockstar announced that a PC version of the game is in development and is slated for release on November 18 in North America and November 21 here in Europe. The move makes perfect sense as all previous GTA’s (not including the Stories series) have made their way into PC gamers hands.

I finally completed the Xbox 360 version a couple of weeks back and, despite some annoyances; I really enjoyed it for the most part. I do understand where people are coming from when they say that the game isn’t as fun as it’s predecessor; San Andreas. It doesn’t really make much sense why Rockstar North would strip out a lot of the areas that made San Andreas so much fun to play (such as sky diving, tanks, cycling etc.) but I guess the whole point was to go for a more realistic style. There’s such a thing as being too realistic though, and while the city is alive and the cars all handle differently you can’t help missing the insane fun you could have in the previous games. Plus, the character of Niko directly contradicts any of the random killing sprees that are such a staple of the GTA series. Luckily Saints Row 2 is attempting to bring back the fun to the free-roaming sandbox genre.

The PC version of GTA IV will also feature an “expanded” multiplayer mode. Although there’s no word on what this actually means I guess there has to be something included for making PC gamers wait. The PC will most likely support more players in the city at the same time than the 360 and PS3 versions, although I always thought 16 players seemed like enough anyway. For me the multiplayer modes were fun for a while but, ultimately, it got a little boring because – while the city is lovingly crafted and looks amazing – there really isn’t all that much to do in Liberty City and jumping into helicopter blades from the tallest building in the game does get a little dull after a while. I do pop on for the odd GTA Race from time to time though – as that never gets old!

Do play it for the story though, as it’s almost movie-like and you really start to get emotionally attached to Niko and his close friends. Brucie baby, I salute you!