Forums aflame over GTAIV freezing

[UPDATE]: PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 players alike reporting crash problems with Rockstar Games' latest; Sony reports an "extremely low volume" of complaints, promises it is working on a solution.

Last month, the launch of Rockstar Games' Bully on the Xbox 360 was marred by a bevy of crash bugs and other glitches. With this morning's heavily anticipated release of Grand Theft Auto IV for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, Rockstar finds itself dealing with still more troubleshooting trouble, as online forums are buzzing with reports of crashes.

Combing through crash threads on the Xbox.com forums, Sony's official message boards, GameSpot, and the NeoGAF forums, it seems that the issues are affecting PlayStation 3 users more frequently, although gamers with both systems are reporting problems. Reports of crashes on the 60GB version of the PS3 hardware are the most common, and tech support advice like deleting and re-installing the game doesn't appear to address the issue effectively.

[UPDATE] When asked about freezing issues, A Rockstar representative directed GameSpot to Sony for comment. Earlier today, a Sony representative replied with the following statement:

"Yes, we are aware of what the message boards and a few of the industry blogs are saying about a 'freezing' issue with GTA IV on a limited number of PS3s. Although we have seen an extremely low volume of contacts to our customer service department regarding such an issue, we want to ensure that every consumer has a great experience on our console and with GTA IV. All parties involved are working to isolate the problem for those few units and identify a solution."

A Microsoft representative has not yet returned a request for comment.

1303 Comments

  • Vorador47

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 4:27 pm PT

    well so far i haven't had a single crash or slow down.

    all i had was one time well starting a multi player game it decided to just sit there with starting game on the screen, but the xbox didn't freeze, we could all still talk to each other, so was just probably a issue with the host and everyone had to quit to the dashboard

  • supaflyvenom13

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 4:24 pm PT

    I had two disc read errors on my X360 yesterday in ~6 hours of playtime, but there was a large, deep scratch on it, so I think it was just a packaging problem. I got a new copy today, and after 3 1/2 hours I haven't gotten a DRE yet.

  • shoeman12

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 4:18 pm PT

    i wonder how many people have actually had this problem.

  • Neagoth

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 4:07 pm PT

    Playing on 360 Elite here had no crashes or slowdown in over 20 hours of game play ,feel sorry for people who are as its a great game

  • belwyrm

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 4:04 pm PT

    I'm playing on a 20GB PS3 (updated with an 80 GB HD) and When I first start the game I get a little slowdown when moving between areas. It clears up after about 20 minutes and the game runs fine. The only time it's frozen on me was when I left it on pause for 3 hours, and I just had to restart the game.

  • ZURICH2006

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 4:01 pm PT

    The support rep said they have been receiving tons of calls all day, and though there was nothing he could immediately suggest, he did do a bit of a poll- gathering info for R* that could result in a patch.

    Questions Asked

    1. What Version of the PS3 do you have? (I have the 60 gig)
    2. How much space is available on your HDD? (around 40 gigs)
    3. What kind of TV do you play on, HD or SD? (HD)
    4. What Resolutions do you have selected? (all of them up to 1080p)
    5. What kind of connection do you use for your TV? (HDMI)
    6. What controller do you use? (Dual Shock 3)


    I suggest calling them with your problem so a solution may be found more quickly.

    In Canada call- 1 800 269 5721
    In the US call- 1 866 405 5464


    I hope this is at least something-

  • madman_420

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:48 pm PT

    everybody seems to be doing alright with the PS3 version freezing... everyone but me... i have a 60 gig and i have played for a total of 4 hours in the past 2 days, and it froze on me twice already... once during a cut scene and once online.. so rockstar better wise up and fix it via patch...PZ

  • Richmaester6907

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:47 pm PT

    NO crashes HA HA HA HA!

  • TheAllSeeingI

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:45 pm PT

    I think they must have had someone from EA doing the testing!!

  • Antaeus1991

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:42 pm PT

    I havent had a single crash MUWAHAHAHAAHAHA!!!!! (I'm on the 360 version btw)

  • Hojo214

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:40 pm PT

    I played for 6 hours and 30 minutes last night with no break and it didn't freeze or slow down once but I kept crashing my motorcycle and that pissed me off........................................... So I shot someone in the face and now I feel all better

  • anigamer

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:39 pm PT

    It crashed on my PS3, but I didn't find it to be a problem since the game saves every time you complete something.

    I was trying to buy a burger when the clerk rolled on the floor, got up, and couldn't stop telling me that she got my burger. And I couldn't move. lol.

  • PhantomPlayers

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:38 pm PT

    lol well they did manage to cram everything on a dual layer disk (Around 8.5 gb of info)....

  • TRH4469

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:32 pm PT

    playing on the xbox 360, i have played about 5 hours over the past two days combined. not once has it frozen. sure there is a little slowdown to load rarely but there was in san andreas too.

  • TheAllSeeingI

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:28 pm PT

    On release day my PS3 was on from 10am till half 4 pm. No problems at all. Today the game froze after 40 mins of play as I was driving to pick up a fare for Roman. Had to turn off the PS3 and re-load the game. About another 40mins it froze again during a gunfight in a warehouse. Not good. I have a 60GB model which I upgraded to 250GB. System doesn't feel hot and it's not kept in a confined space so I think it is def software related. Let's hope Rockstar find out what's going on and we get a patch soon.

  • stewarty77

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:27 pm PT

    Hope they will bring out a patch soon, its just happened to me 2 times within the last hour forcing me to reset!

  • squarejp

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:23 pm PT

    Anyway guys, I would like to tell you that GTA4 is very detail, Stop fighting over PS3 or XBOX 360 version okay? I own both systems and I have to finally decided which version to get, the xbox 360 because i know more people with that console more than PS3.

    For those of you who understand Chinese espeically cantonese, you might have figured that some citizens shouted in Cantonese foul languages. They even have shop names written in Chinese that when you read out loud in Cantonese they are so damn funny and vulgar.

    Go to Chinatown and look for these signs:
    Bo Gai Supermarket. It's sounds like the Cantonese swear word: Pok Gai, means go to die!

    Yellow Color Internet Cafe: Yellow Color means Yellow, in Cantonese, it also means "pervert", "porno", That means Pervert Internet Cafe.

    S.HO Restaurant (I guess that's self explained)

    (Kyle Health Food Inc.) It means Weired Food Inc.

    (Lancy H Job Agency) This means you poop watery poop.

    many more, go ask your Chinese friends who know Cantonese well.
    This game is so funny and popular even in Hong Kong!

  • Disciple_Gamer

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:21 pm PT

    I'm glad I have not bought the game yet. I will let Rockstar fix this first before i get my copy.

  • Somebody89

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:21 pm PT

    Wow expect fanboys to drag in their jiihad and start complaining again.

  • SporkFireXPS

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:14 pm PT

    I'm glad GTA on the PSN was working Monday night. Online is very fun (almost better then single-player) and even with 16 players I experienced little to no lag.

  • jonwen55

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:12 pm PT

    d1nonlyclo---
    get your PS3 fanboy crap out of here

  • dewd4

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:08 pm PT

    Mine works fine However multiplay is lagging like hell.

  • Sniper_Elite08

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:05 pm PT

    tH3_cH3a7_027- "dinonlyco-
    Just b/c they can't all be biased fan boys like yourself means they hate your beloved god of a system. If it's having more problems, shouldn't we know?
    Or would you rather them lie about it and you waste your money anyway?"

    If you look at his post then you'll see he's quoting korichy. Good job genius.

  • mikeesco

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:04 pm PT

    That sucks cause my 360 ver. has not crashed once, but I have only played online, never campaign,still at start of game, is it only a campaign thing or a whole disc thing,

    ONLINE $#@&ING ROCKS!!!!!!

    P.S. oh yeah, I rez'ed the $89.99 ver. from game crazy and they said it would be out next week, they gave me a reg copy and said i can just swap it when it gets here next week, WHAT THE HELLS UP WITH THAT???

  • e1337prodigy

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 3:02 pm PT

    The 360 version froze on mine, but that is just because the 360 does that for most games.

  • thewolf619

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:58 pm PT

    @Prodigy
    The PS3 version DOES have online multiplayer.

  • Sparticus1013

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:56 pm PT

    "Dhillon123 - PC> ALL HAHAHA"

    Right...because as we all know, computers never freeze...

  • Markaleo

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:55 pm PT

    damn mines frozen a few too many times and im gettin kinda annoyed, the first couple a times it would freeze then keep goin but my recent freeze made me restart the ps3

  • tH3_cH3a7_027

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:54 pm PT

    dinonlyco-
    Just b/c they can't all be biased fan boys like yourself means they hate your beloved god of a system. If it's having more problems, shouldn't we know?
    Or would you rather them lie about it and you waste your money anyway?

  • Gravestorm

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:54 pm PT

    Played 12 -13 hours of GTA on my 360.... ain't nothing wrong at all. It works perfectly.

  • okassar

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:53 pm PT

    GTA IV is an amazing game...too bad Rockstar might have to end up reimbursing a lot of people,lolz. I didn't here my friends say anything about the game freezing yet though,but at this scale,I would guess this is happening to 1 in 10 or so.And wtf?Plzduntbanme,a freezing game can't give you the Red Ring of Death,frikkin' fanboy,u just want to show that the 360 easily gets RROD,hell no.Don't comment anymore.

  • Killer_Llama

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:52 pm PT

    Well.... I've got a 60gb, and have been playing for a few hours and not once did it freeze... I'm going to play again now, but I have a feeling it is a disc quality issue possibly

  • Sw1tched

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:52 pm PT

    Mine froze 2 times on the 80gb ps3 in 20+ hours of play.....i'll take it!...they will fix it. No big deal.....but disabling "Media Sharing" fixed me for 12 hours now.

  • prodigychild123 posted Apr 30, 2008 2:51 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    prodigychild123

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:51 pm PT (hide)

    I've asked this question 3 times already... Someone please answer.

    Why does the PS3 Version not have Online multiplayer????????

  • corn999

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:51 pm PT

    IMO Gamespot IS biased towards the PS3. Thats how I feel because whenever there is a new preview on a console game 90% you click on that link and its for the 360 preview and two lines at the end of the preview mentions the PS3 version. But I'm not mad at them, this website only influences what kind of games I buy at the most... 5%. so, 95% what I want...5% what gamespot readers,editors say/think about said game.

  • Taylor9124

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:50 pm PT

    Mine hasn't frozen once yet. But im still unable to go online!

  • mordecai12

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:50 pm PT

    First time I've heard of it. Glad I'm not one of you guys that is getting the freezes

  • heaven_weapon

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:49 pm PT

    why?! why 60Gb PS3 users like me?!

  • PlzDuntBanMe

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:48 pm PT

    Im really pissed.

    I got the game, i watched a second of the intro, than it froze. I opened my xbox again, RRoD!!!

    I MEAN WTF!!!!!!!!

  • daveh17

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:48 pm PT

    I've played 6 hrs on the 360. Not one problem. Great game!

  • rued2k6

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:46 pm PT

    i am one of the unlucky ones i guess....my copy froze 3 times within an hour. Sure other games freeze but never like that. not even oblivion.

  • frostybubbler

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:46 pm PT

    Truth be told, the PS3 has been a dismal failure from the beginning. A good game FINALLY comes out and it runs into issues. Sony cannot buy a break... Oh yeah, I was here when this happened... crazy man!! http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/141126,CST-NWS-ps18.article

  • sniperhare

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:41 pm PT

    Sucks for you guys. Mine has been perfect.

  • d1nonlyclo

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:38 pm PT

    korichy: "I hate how Gamespot doesn't waste a second on posting bad news about PS3 . "t seems that the issues are affecting PlayStation 3 users more frequently". Gamespot is a PS3 hater. Also for the ones that read the article about midnight launch, do you remember these lines; "The PlayStation 3 release in particular was riddled with launch-related crimes". COME ON how can you know that at some gamestop, for example I am not saying it was like that, had an incident and that the incident was related to some guy that was going to purchase the PS3 version of the game. Gamespot for your information it also came out on the 360 at the same time, not a minute before or later. See ya folks"

    Couple things: you can't argue with what users are reporting with regards to the frequency of crashes for the game. Just look at who's citing complaints regarding the freezing problems in this forum.

    Secondly the comment regarding the "Playstation 3 release" being "riddled with crime" is referencing the system release, NOT the GTAIV PS3 release. Which had a lot of crime problems with people trying to get the system.

    Anyways, that was bothering me. As for me the only freeze I've experienced (I'm on a launch 80 GB PS3) was during my first police car chase which I attributed to my speedy movement through the city. Could it be that it isn't necessarily a problem with the game specifically but a hardware performance issue? Like slow information transfer/caching?

  • d_love

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:37 pm PT

    1108 comments. why bother?

  • prodigychild123

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:33 pm PT

    So why does the PS3 Version not have Online multiplayer????????

  • staley6565

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:33 pm PT

    PS3, played on 2 different 60gbs between me and my friend's houses, about 5 hr each, not 1 freeze.

    Seems like this might be more of a disc quality issue maybe? If it was a game code error, then I think the results wouldn't be so haphazard.

  • manicfoot

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:30 pm PT

    I have a 60GB PS3 and have played the game for 12 hours straight with no problems. I guess I'm one of the lucky ones My heart goes out to any gamer getting frustrated by this problem.

  • DonnieDarko

    Posted Apr 30, 2008 2:28 pm PT

    It's so bad on my PS3 that I can't really play the game. It freezes at random times, usually after I've had just enough time to start a mission. ROCKSTAR SOLD ME A BROKEN GAME. I really hope they fix this soon, because the bits of game I get to play are awesome.
    (My PS3 is a launch 20 GIG, which I replaced with a 100 GIG HD)

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