[1] “Grand Theft Auto IV”, the gangster-themed computer game that earned both critical claim and strong criticism, broke first day sales records in Britain, according to an industry body’s initial estimates on Thursday.

The Entertainment Retailers Association, which represents 5,000 stores selling games, music and films, said the game sold about 609,000 copies on Tuesday.

That beats the previous record held by an earlier title in the same series, “Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas”, which sold 501,000 copies on October 29, 2004.

“The past 24 hours have been like it’s Christmas all over again for our members,” ERA Director Kim Bayley said in a statement. “GTA IV is a phenomenon.”

Its release was one of the most hotly anticipated in the gaming world in years. Fans queued outside shops around the world to be the among the first to get a copy.

The ERA said the 40-pound game had eclipsed big releases in the film and music industry.

Source: [2] Yahoo News

[3]

[4] Return to the main QBS site