It's possible you just got a faulty copy, I don't know. I've got faulty stuff from Steam which wouldn't install and had to re-purchase the game. Maybe a crack would be in order, if the game [that you purchased] isn't letting you play...the game.
Right click on the GTA icon, go to properties, click the "compatibility" tab, see if there is anything checked that says "run this program as administrator", and uncheck it.
Heres some of what the people said.
"You need to install the Visual C++ 2005 redistributable. "
"I had the same problem so i emailed securom, they sent a reply saying that the error means that the gta4 exec has been changed in some way. So i did a reinstall and same prob but noticed i had the shield symbol on the gta icon (run this program as administrator) dont know why that was ticked under compatability via properties. Unticked and finally worked."
"Install all the exe's and the one msi file that is in your first DvD (DvDDRIVE:\GTAIV\Redistributable\*.exe) This SHOULD get rid of that issue."
"It is in your DvD. Right click -> open. to access the dvd instead of autorun. The address is given above. I hope you know what letter is ur dvd drive in."
Hope this was helpful..
Fuck, something just hit me, guys. My Mobo will be SLI, and I've chosen an ATi card...I guess I'm going to have to change to Nvidia. I almost have about 620 dollars which is enough for a computer + monitor. My GPU price range is 280. Should I get a GTX 260 or a 9800GT or something else? I have no idea about Nvidia cards...I guess I better research
The problem with the pirated versions will probably be fixed by some code wizard.
Personally, I'll pirate a game, and if I like it, I'll buy the factory copy.
That's strange, I have the same video card as you, yet yours has 1GB of video memory.
I'm afraid, if you had the same graphics card as me, but DX is having some glitch, you and I won't be able to play GTA4.
A 9600GT will play it fine.