Rockstar have just released 15 new high-res 4K screenshots of the PC version of Grand Theft Auto V. The game is thankfully still on track for release on the 14th April, and an official trailer is due out next week. Click the thumbnails below to see the screenshots in their full 4K glory.
 

See more GTA V PC Screenshots

 
Cities: Skylines is a city simulation game that was released a few days ago, and for those who don't know, is basically "everything Sim City should have been, and more". Despite its very recent introduction to the world, someone has already recreated the whole of GTAV's Los Santos in it.
 
Steam user grockefeller, who has kindly released his save game file for the city on the Steam Workshop, says:

Here's the completely built region of South San Andreas including the cities of Los Santos, Palomino, and Sandy Shores.
Ever wanted to challenge and continue the vibrant metropolis of Rockstar Games? Now you could! You'll have to deal with multiple problem like employement, ecology, waste disposal, and water gestion.

If you own the game (which is only $ 30 / £23), you can have Los Santos in it with a simple click of a button on the Steam Workshop page. Below are a few more screenshots of the city, you should recognise how incredible the work put into this is almost immediately. Also below is a video from YouTube user Smoka Cola showing the city in action.
 
 

[via Kotaku]

The BBC are producing a drama based on our beloved videogame series, Grand Theft Auto. The drama is going to be part of the BBC's Make It Digital initiative (press release and news article) in which it is pushing the UK to get more involved in the digital age, in particular helping young children to get involved with various aspects of computing, but also producing documentaries and other media.
 
There's not really any concrete details on the drama at the moment, but former Gamespot UK editor-in-chief Guy Cocker revealed on Twitter that he is involved with the project, and has said that it's a 90-minute drama focussing on the people who made the game, i.e. the Houser brothers. 

More detail on the GTA show I worked on: it's a 90-minute feature-length drama focussing on the people behind its creation.#BBCMakeItDigital

— Guy Cocker (@guycocker) March 12, 2015

So "based on Grand Theft Auto" is a slightly hyperbolic line from the BBC, as it sounds more of a drama on the making of GTA, not about the game itself. Still, it will be interesting to see how this turns out. No word from the BBC on when it will air, other than the fact it will be on BBC Two, we'll let you know when we find out more details on that.

The BBC are famously neutral and overly politically-correct, perhaps to a fault sometimes, however it must be said that in general they actually have a fairly positive outlook on videogames. In 2013 prior to the release of Grand Theft Auto V, a report titled Grand Theft Auto: One of Britain's finest cultural exports? was published, which contained various points of view, seems to acknowledge the impact it's had on the world, and the UK's economy and culture.

 
The latest free update for GTA Online dropped earlier today, and it's the one you've been waiting a full 2 years for. Heists.
 
We probably didn't need a news article to tell you this information, but here's Rockstar's quick recap on them:

Heists, a brand new 4-player cooperative gameplay experience for Grand Theft Auto Online, giving players the chance to team up and pull off a string of intense, multi-part heists, raids and robberies across Los Santos and Blaine County, is now available for free inside Grand Theft Auto Online.

Plan, Prepare, Execute – Online Heists span numerous missions featuring new gameplay, vehicles, weapons, and scenarios to test a team’s full set of skills: from computer hacking to stealth infiltration, precision driving to aerial dogfighting, sniping, skydiving and much more.
 

4-Player Teams, 4 Ways to Play – Choose your roles and strategize to complete each stage of a Heist, with tight communication and coordination the key to success. Some missions will require the team to work as a single unit, while others will break the team into separate roles to complete key objectives. Replay each Heist to experience a different perspective on the action, and complete Elite Challenges for extra cash.
 

Additional New Adversary Modes – Brings new kinds of competition to GTA Online while new Daily Objectives and other Freemode activities bring chaos to the streets of Los Santos and Blaine County.
 
Assemble Your Team – Create a Crew or join existing Crews at the Rockstar Games Social Club to earn additional RP rewards as you play.

As you might expect the servers are getting pretty hammered and have been throughout the day, so things may be slow or not even play at all. All you can do is be patient.

If you've managed to play a heist let us know in the comments how it went!

 
Various gaming outlets recently got to play a heist in GTA Online, and their hands-on impressions have been released today in both text and video form from IGN, GamesRadar and GameReactor. In addition to their article IGN also put together a 23 minute video on how to plan a heist.
 
According to IGN the heists are "spectacular". They consist of several smaller set-up missions before a final big event. To start a heist in the first place you'll need to be at least rank 12, as well as own a high end apartment, then you'll simply need to wait for a call from Lester. There is also a setup cost, apparently around $ 60,000, this may vary in different missions/heists.
 
IGN go into detail about all this in their article, we won't copy and paste all of that here in case you don't want any minor spoilers, feel free to read it at your own leisure, or just watch their video we linked to above. We will quote their conclusion though, as it certainly sings very high praise for heists, making it sound as if the delays and the waiting will all be worth it.

If this sounds like it was a lot, and if it sounds like it was intense, it's because it was both of those things. Just a single full heist arc yielded several great Could-you-believe-it-when? stories for the next day's watercooler chat. Heck, this isn't even all of ours from our single play session!

 
GamesRadar reckon that each of the heists (there are 5 in this first update) will take around 2 or 3 hours to complete, depending on your approach and skill of course.

The update delivers five major Heists, playable in four-player co-op, that take around 2 or 3 hours each to complete subject to your skills and approach. Each heist is split into substantial preparation missions of 20-30 minutes each, similar to story mode heists. The update also gives you new daily objectives (a bit like Destiny), new Versus modes and a raft of new vehicles and equipment, including a VTOL Hydra jet fighter and night vision goggles.

 
The guys at their GTAVOclock team put their thoughts into a very thorough 1 hour long report, which you can listen to in their YouTube video, or below.
 

 
And finally a quote from GameReactor reminding us of the importance of good communication in your team:

Cooperation is essential, tag-teaming Merryweather soldiers on foot or in vehicles while escaping with a machine gun-packing jeep, or putting down covering fire to open an escape for fellow crew members boxed in by authorities in a hand-off gone wrong.

Communication is important, even vital come one standout moment in a half day's worth of them: working as a coordinated sniper team during a nighttime infiltration of the Lab. If any guard or lab assistant is alerted, it's mission over. Cue timed simultaneous takedowns of patrols and witnesses.

 
Rockstar provided sites with loads of new screenshots of heists in action, check them out in our gallery below.
 

Just to remind you all that heists will finally be arriving in GTA Online next week on the 10th March. In addition to heists there will be some new adversary game modes making an appearance, read the summaries below for more info on those.
 
From the Newswire, Rockstar summarise:

 

 

Come Out To Play
A team of three Runners just trying to make it home, and a team of Hunters are out for blood. Runners are well-armed but limited to movement by foot, while the opposition wield free-aim shotguns and ride motorbikes or ATVs. Hunters must stay on their bikes and have access to unlimited lives, while the Runners have just one life but all their weapons available to pick off the Hunters at will.

 

Siege Mentality
Up to four players stand their ground, outnumbered but not outgunned as they fight to survive against up to 6 determined attackers in a location defense mode, GTA style. Attackers have unlimited lives but fight only with sawn-off shotguns. Defenders have full use of all their weapons.

 

Hasta La Vista
The chase is on as Truckers in big rig cabs hunt down a team of Cyclists. The Cyclists' goal is simple: reach the final checkpoint without getting crushed under the wheels of the pursuing trucks. Without traditional weapons the Truckers must rely solely on their vehicles to crush the Cyclists. Meanwhile, the Cyclists must harness the maneuverability and acceleration of their bikes to evade the trucks, while keeping an eye over their shoulder. If one of the Cyclists reaches the checkpoint, the Cyclists win. If all Cyclists are terminated, the Truckers prevail.

Daily Objectives and new freemode activities will be other way in which you can boost your GTA$ earnings :

 

 

Daily Objectives
The Los Santos daily hustle just got a little more lucrative. Whether you tend towards Jobs or free-form activities, Daily Objectives will give you a rotating series of challenges to take on for GTA$ rewards. With three new objectives per day, players can stack up challenges over consecutive days to earn bonuses of up to 0,000.

 

New Freemode Activities
You and your fellow players also have new opportunities for cash and RP rewards with new activities added to the world in Freemode. Be on the lookout for calls from Lester, who may need help to distract the cops in a specific area while Lester’s accomplices finish their criminal business. Lamar may call looking for help destroying a vehicle or two, while Trevor and Ron need occasional help picking their business rival’s planes out of the sky. Along with GTA$ and RP bonuses, there are all-new Awards available for completing these challenges with style.

 

There's also a new in-game Email notification system that will allow you to contact and message any of your GTA Online friends, no matter what session they’re in - as well as a host of new Awards that yield new items including exclusive t-shirts and car modifications.

The PC release still seems to be on track for its 14th April release. Only time will tell if it gets delayed again. Assuming it doesn't, you can be assured that heists and all this other new content will be available from day one.