Grand Theft Auto 4turns seventeen years old this year, but it’s still widely considered one of Rockstar’s best releases. There’s even been an emerging opinion that it’s superior toGrand Theft Auto 5, one of the most successful games of all time, which further proves the other’s importance to the series. But there’s one big problem withGTA 4that gamers around the world have been begging Rockstar to remedy: it’s still landlocked to seventh-generation consoles.
AlthoughGTA 4has never gotten an 8th-or 9th-generation port, it can still be played on PC, or onXbox consoles via backwards compatibility.
But these fans have recently found cause for hope, as rumors have emerged about Rockstar potentiallyportingGrand Theft Auto 4to PlayStation 4, which would, of course, make it playable on PS5 as well. This rumor has come from a few different sources, but it appears that its impetus was an element on Rockstar’sGTA 4support page, which listed PS4 as one of the available platforms for the game. This element has since been removed from the Rockstar website. Naturally, this is a tantalizing prospect for many, but fans shouldn’t hold out hope just yet.
Why a Grand Theft Auto 4 Current-Gen Port Seems Unlikely
For whatever reason, Rockstar has historically shied away from porting its games—those that aren’tGTA 5at least—to current-gen hardware. One must remember thatRed Dead Redemption 2, which released just two years before the Xbox Series X|S and PS5, still hasn’t gotten a current-gen upgrade, despite this being a common AAA practice in recent years. Just like thisGTA 4rumor, there has been no shortage of rumors and “leaks” suggesting thatRed Dead 2would be making its way to PS5and Xbox Series platforms, but these claims have yet to materialize.
As for theGTA 4PS4 portin question, the available evidence is a bit dubious. For one thing, the aforementioned Rockstar support page only mentions PS4, not Xbox One:GTA 4is indeed playable on Xbox One via backwards compatibility, but a proper port to the last-gen system would still be an obvious detail to advertise, as it would drive more players to purchase it. In that same vein, it’s a bit odd that the support page lists PS4 as a platform, but not PS5. Even thoughGTA 4could likely run very well on PS4, one would imagine that Rockstar would choose to make any upcomingGTA 4port a proper PS5 title, making full use of that console’s hardware while also presenting the port as a more technologically advanced one. There’s also no information about a Switch or Switch 2 port, which isn’t a smoking gun, but still a bit odd. All in all, there are a lot of signs pointing to this on-site “PS4” element simply being added by mistake.
Fans Should Be Skeptical of GTA 4 Port News, but Not All Hope Is Lost
Even if the PS4 element was added in error, it’s possible that this was a mistake of jumping the gun too early; a current-or last-gen port ofGTA 4could still be imminent. It might be more than a decade overdue, but bringingGTA 4to modern hardware could help elevate hype forGTA 6, especially since a lot of younger or newer gamers have never had the chance to experience Niko Bellic’s story. And while Rockstar does have a history of abandoning its older projects, it’s been better about this recently, as evidenced by last year’sRed Dead Redemptionport.
Grand Theft Auto 4
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What does the American Dream mean today? For Niko Bellic, fresh off the boat from Europe, it is the hope he can escape his past. For his cousin, Roman, it is the vision that together they can find fortune in Liberty City, gateway to the land of opportunity.As they slip into debt and are dragged into a criminal underworld by a series of shysters, thieves, and sociopaths, they discover that the reality is very different from the dream in a city that worships money and status, and is heaven for those who have them and a living nightmare for those who don’t.
