Grand Theft Auto

What Is the Best Video Game of the Decade?
Video games

What Is the Best Video Game of the Decade?

It was pretty hard to narrow down the top games of the year, so imagine how painful it was to pick just a choice few games of the decade!
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It was pretty hard to narrow down the top games of the year, so imagine how painful it was to pick just a choice few games of the decade! It's almost impossible to cast one game aside for another, but ruthless decisions must be made. So out of these fine titles here, tell me what is the best video game of the decade?

And don't stop here — check the rest of my Best of 2009 polls, too!

popsugar poll

What Is the Best Video Game of the Decade?
The Sims (2000)
24%
Halo (2001)
9%
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)
5%
World of Warcraft (2004)
19%
Resident Evil 4 (2005)
2%
Wii Sports (2006)
8%
Rock Band (2007)
10%
Super Mario Galaxy (2007)
7%
BioShock (2008)
4%
Mass Effect (2008)
4%
Metal Gear Solid 4: Rise of the Patriots (2008)
4%
Uncharted 2: Among Thives
5%
Wii Fit Plus to Be Available in the US on Oct.4
News

Daily Tech: Wii Fit Plus to Be Available In the US on Oct.4

The second installment to Wii Fit is coming to the US on Oct.
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GTA Said to Influence Death of Taxi Driver
Video games

Do You Blame GTA For Teen Killing Taxi Driver?

In another round of GTA related crimes, a Bangkok teen has been sentenced to death after stabbing a taxi driver multiple times.
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In another round of GTA related crimes, a Bangkok teen has been sentenced to death after stabbing a taxi driver multiple times. His reason? He wanted to see if it was as easy to steal a cab in real life as it is in the controversial Grand Theft Auto game.


The 18-year-old student, who is known to be quite the obsessed GTA player, says that he didn't really mean to kill the victim, that he only started stabbing the driver when he began fighting back.

I know GTA has had a bad rap from the get-go, but I'm gonna put the blame where blame is due on this one: the kid with the knife. Do you blame GTA's influence for this incident?

Source

Thai Teen Kills Taxi Driver, Video Game Pulled Off Every Shelf
Video games

Thai Teen Kills Taxi Driver, Video Game Pulled Off Every Shelf

The strikingly violent video game Grand Theft Auto IV will no longer be sold in Thailand, after a teenager murdered a taxi driver while trying to bring the virtual violence into reality.
by LibertySugar

The strikingly violent video game Grand Theft Auto IV will no longer be sold in Thailand, after a teenager murdered a taxi driver while trying to bring the virtual violence into reality. Video retailers have pulled the game off the shelves, and replaced it with other games. As for the teen who played the game for hours a day over a few years span, he now faces a possible death sentence.

Bangkok's police chief said that the teen wanted to find out if it was as easy in real life to rob a taxi as it was in the game. He said the boy planned to use the stolen money to play the game at arcades.

While I have a low tolerance for violence (I closed my eyes during most of The Dark Knight), I can't decide if I think Thailand is overreacting to this individual's crime. To see what experts might say, read more

Teens Blame Grand Theft Auto Video Game For Their All-Night Crime Spree of Mugging and Vandalism
Video games

Teens Blame Grand Theft Auto For Their All-Night Crime Spree

It seems that this little video game out in the world known as Grand Theft Auto tends to get people riled up — just check the comments on this post and that post, and it turns out that the game also riles people up in the real world, and has turned into an inspiration of sorts.
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It seems that this little video game out in the world known as Grand Theft Auto tends to get people riled up — just check the comments on this post and that post, and it turns out that the game also riles people up in the real world, and has turned into an inspiration of sorts.

Just ask the group of teen boys who went on an all-night crime spree of mugging and bashing cars with baseball bats and crowbars. After they were apprehended, a police spokesman for Nassau County, New York, said that the boys admitted they were "emulating the character in that Grand Theft Auto game" (oh, that naughty Nico!).

I've got my bucket of popcorn ready to see how this case and its defense plays out. What do you guys make of all this?

Source

New York Times Reports
Video games

Which Is Worse in a Video Game: Sex or Violence?

By now, it shouldn't surprise you that the cornerstones of the hugely successful video game franchise Grand Theft Auto are sex and violence.
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By now, it shouldn't surprise you that the cornerstones of the hugely successful video game franchise Grand Theft Auto are sex and violence. The San Andreas version's hidden sex scenes even spurred a class-action lawsuit, where offended buyers could sue, but what the lawyers in this case were most surprised by were how few people actually cared about the scenes — only 2,676 filed claims (of the millions of GTA consumers).

Maybe they were more perturbed by the senseless killings of innocent randoms? Of the dialogues I have heard on GTA, more people cite the extreme violence of the game as what bothers them, over the tasteless sexuality portrayed in the game. While I'm a little more disturbed by people using avatars to mindlessly blow the heads off others, I also wouldn't want my (imaginary) young kids watching sex scenes in their games (especially in the nature of GTA; you know what I'm talking about).

A few months ago, I did a poll asking whether sex and violence in games bothered you or not, which turned out to be somewhat of a three-way split among, "Yes, it does," "No, it doesn't," and "I love sex and violence!" Now, I'd like to find out which is the worse offender. So, you weigh in: Which bothers you more, sex or violence?

Source

Conan O'Brien's Grand Theft Auto, Part Two
Humor

Grand Theft Auto: Soccer Dads and Happy Lads Edition, II

It's official: The G-rated version of Grand Theft Auto is a hit and Conan's back with more.
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It's official: The G-rated version of Grand Theft Auto is a hit and Conan's back with more. He maintained the setting and atmosphere of the original game, but tweaked the values and motives of the players — just a bit. The result is quite lovely. Everyone acts with a little more . . . Sense and Sensibility. Now who wouldn't want that?

Conan O'Brien's Grand Theft Auto
Humor

Grand Theft Auto: Soccer Dads and Happy Lads Edition

Grand Theft Auto, the ridiculously offensive and violent video game that scores big with kids and grown buffoons alike, released its fourth edition this past week.
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Grand Theft Auto, the ridiculously offensive and violent video game that scores big with kids and grown buffoons alike, released its fourth edition this past week. Much to my delight, it's a keeper! I had a hunch that all the needless bloodshed, prostitute abuse, and vulgar language would get old and eventually give way to something a little more happy-go-Tootsie. All our players need is a fresh set of linens and a decent meditation spot. With these things, they're good to go eat their soy dogs in peace.