Rockstar Games and the UPS corporation—sorry for calling you Fed Ex yesterday!—came through in a major way this morning, dropping off a hot (but legit) copy of Grand Theft Auto IV at Kotaku Towers West. Naturally, I took an appropriate amount of time playing the game before posting that it had arrived. But this isn't one of those disgusting bragging posts, where some schmuck editor taunts you with an early release; it's a reminder.

Our GTA IV review is going live tomorrow morning, 9 AM Pacific/12 PM Eastern in the easy-to-read Kotaku style. After that, expect a handy platform comparison, in which we talk about how GTA IV performs on both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Yes, I've played both quite a bit, so I hope you'll find my nitpicking informative. See you tomorrow!

Our coverage is live:
Grand Theft Auto IV Review: Life, Liberty City And The Pursuit Of Happiness
Which Version Of GTA IV Should You Buy? We Compare The PS3 and 360 Versions
SIXAXIS Brings Nothing to GTA IV (But Frustration And Burning Helicopter Chassis)

As Mike McWhertor and I alluded to earlier this week, we both spent five days last week holed up in a room in a swank San Francisco hotel playing through Grand Theft Auto IV. Yes, all of the way through.

The embargo for our official review and other hands-ons, impressions, comparisons, stories and whatnots doesn't lift until Sunday (10 a.m. Crecentral), but the package of stories I wrote for the Rocky Mountain News ran this morning. The story for the paper is geared for a much more mainstream audience, so I'm not sure how much you all will get out of it, but here's how it wraps up.

In Grand Theft Auto IV the story isn't just an amalgam of cut scenes and cleverly written dialogue, it's the experiences I create, too. It's now, watching Niko stand, his shoulders slumped, that the depth of this game finally hits me.

Niko's journey, the one crafted by Rockstar, may have ended, but Niko's adventures in the story I am creating have just begun.

If you're looking for something to pass your time that is, I believe, free of any major story spoilers, than hit up the link.

I was happy to see that the story not only took over the entire front page of the feature's section, but even got a mention on the front page of the paper. Too bad they went with a headline that sorta highlights the violence of the game. I suppose they would have done the same thing for blow-out coverage of a movie like Once Upon a Time in America.

Grand Theft Auto: A Brutal New World and What the developer of Grand Theft Auto IV champions [Rocky Mountain News]

No surprises here. Today, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe confirmed the long rumored (with pictures!) Grand Theft Auto IV bundle. Going on sale April 29th, it's packed with a 40GB PS3, a SIXAXIS and copy of Grand Theft Auto IV. Says David Reeves, SCEE president:

We are delighted to offer the millions of PS3 and GTA fans the ultimate gaming package.

I received a big, flat square box in the mail today packed with Grand Theft Auto IV swag. It included some pretty funny stuff:

A Swingers baseball cap
A Swingers baseball T
Two GTA IV stickers
A foam GTA IV four-finger
A mousepad from in-game cybercafe tw@
An I <8LC lapel pin
A N1KO license plate

Now I just need to figure out if I should give this stuff out on the site or keep it for this year's Funde Razor Child's Play party as a giveaway.

If you're jonseing for GTA content with about two weeks left till the game hits hop over to our round up of impressions and details.

The official Grand Theft Auto IV site just updated with another wealth of information including details on four new multiplayer modes.

The new modes, all described in detail on the jump, include Team Mafiaya Work, Team Car Jack City, Turf War and Race.

Hit the jump for a run down of the ones we already have heard about as well.

According to Swedish retailer Webhalen who is boasting some pretty legit-looking box art, it looks like Sony will be offering a Grand Theft Auto IV PlayStation 3 bundle—a standard 40GB PS3 along with a copy of GTA IV for roughly $750. As of right now, the news is still unconfirmed and could be a regional offering only.

Playstation 3 Basenhet - Black 40GB - Grand Theft Auto IV (4) Bundle [Webhallen] Thanks Alex!

In a recent conference, Take 2 chariman Strauss Zelnick refused to be more specific on a release date for GTA IV than the vague February to April 2008 time frame offered following the game's delay. He explained:

We're going to give a firm date when we are utterly convinced that we have it and that isn't right now...we're not in the business of disappointing investors.

GTA is not a series known for its multiplayer, having ditched the premise after GTA II, but it looks like Rockstar is giving it another go. According to GamingExcellence, the company said at a Sony event that they are aiming for 16-person multiplayer that's richer than simple deathmatch gameplay (here's hoping for a hot coffee mode at Starbucks). We assume that this mode will apply to both 360 and PS3 versions of the game.

Another interesting tidbit? The entire world may be unlocked from the start. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Will gamers lose incentive to keep playing? Thoughts?

Coverage of the PlayStation Holiday Preview Event [via gamernode]