Two shots from Retro City Rampage, VBlank’s WiiWare homage to the top-down Grand Theft Auto games.

According to the latest issue of Nintendo Power, which shared these two images and a lot of details about the title, Retro City Rampage pays tribute to more than just GTA in its 40+ missions. It includes nods to all sorts of games and late ’80s/early ’90s pop culture: Metal Gear, Back To The Future, Gargoyle’s Quest, Punch-Out, ThunderCats, John Stamos (have mercy!), TMNT and more!

When we last talked about Retro City Rampage, there was a lot of discussion about whether this 8-bit-style title (and it’s NES homebrew predecessor project) would actually be possible on the NES. While the game isn’t written in Assembly, developer Brian Provinciano of VBlank Entertainment had this to say:

“I’ve taken great pride in its authenticity. The engine is not only designed like the original hardware, it actually restricts non-hardware-like rendering, except in debug mode. A few liberties have been taken for the sake of gameplay, but it still feels 100% authentic. More info in Nintendo Power ;)”

Subscribe: Nintendo Power

See also: Retro City Rampage reveal, more screens

[Via Nintendo Power, Aeropause Games]

tags / retro city rampage / grand theft auto / wiiware / nintendo power / vblank / brian provinciano / ec

Eric declared that this custom promotional Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars DS Lite “doesn’t look too great.” And now it can be yours!

For one thousand dollars.

Or best offer. And yes, it comes with one chopstick stylus.

[Via GameSniped]

tags / ebay / grand theft auto / chinatown wars / jc

“Chinatown War” by Patrick Brown (click the image for the full, wallpaper-sized version).

This artwork is several weeks old, but I didn’t find it until earlier today. Plus, I’m still playing Chinatown Wars and am having a lot of fun with it.

Rockstar Leeds’ efforts to keep gamers’ interest with online exclusives and the Grand Theft Auto Social Club site are commendable, especially on a portable that isn’t used to receiving that sort of attention. Unfortunately, that extra mile hasn’t translated to sales…

Buy: Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars

See also: Liberty City Gun Club found!

[Via Patrick Brown]

tags / chinatown wars / grand theft auto / patrick brown / art / rockstar / ec

Liberty City Gun Club found!

In case you’re still wondering where to find Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars’ Liberty City Gun Club, what with the stream of pop-up messages inviting you to check the firing range out, here’s its exact location.

I picked up the game last Friday, and it’s much better than I expected, even with all the favorable site reviews and forum impressions. I’m also surprised by how much the drug dealing mechanic has added — barreling down city streets in a beat-up Comet towards the nearest safehouse with $30K worth of heroin tucked in a duffel bag on the passenger seat, as Liberty City’s finest chases behind you, sirens blaring, is a unique experience for the DS.

If you haven’t picked it up yet, Amazon has it on sale for $29.99 (free shipping), a bit cheaper than Gamestop’s $35.

Oh yeah, and here’s another custom Chinatown Wars DS Lite system spotted at the Nintendo World Store:

This one looks a lot better than the Huang Lee version!

[Photos via Zetx, thevideogamegirl]

tags / grand theft auto / chinatown wars / rockstar / limited edition / ec

GTA: Chinatown Wars custom DS Lite.

I can’t say for sure whether that’s a decal, a shell, or an actual paintjob, but whatever it is, this custom system doesn’t look too great. Perhaps it’s the lighting? The Nintendo World store in NYC gave this red and black DS Lite to one of the first 20 people who showed up to its launch event yesterday.

Note that this isn’t just a typical Crimson/Black DS Lite with a new paint job/skin/shell — it also has that thin red strip on the back. Who knows what mysteries it conceals.

Here’s a shot with the lid open:

Another glamour shot, surrounded by block-style figures from the GTA 3 and Vice City Kubrick sets.

There’s a lot of hype for Chinatown Wars, with several early impressions I’ve read claiming it as the “best GTA game” they’ve ever played. But then again, you can never trust the opinions of a Nintendo fan.

Metacritic lists it currently as the best reviewed DS game, and the usually grumpy Eurogamer even gave it a 10 out of 10 — impressive, considering the only recent DS title that I can recall receiving a perfect score from a Western outlet was Contra 4 by our own JC Fletcher.

Preorder: Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars

[Images via Saki-Waki]

tags / grand theft auto / chinatown wars / rockstar / nintendo world / custom / ec