PS3, PC Episodes from Liberty City delayed

For Grand Theft Auto IV fans, March was set to go out like a lion with the release of Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City. Previously exclusive to the Xbox 360, the two add-ons to the top-rated game--The Lost and Damned and the Ballad of Gay Tony--were to launch in North America on March 30 both as a single retail boxed product and as a la carte downloads.

However, today Rockstar Games announced that the release of the additional content, which Microsoft paid $50 million to be Xbox 360-exclusive for a limited time, has been delayed. Episodes from Liberty City will now go on sale on April 13 in North America and on April 16 in Europe, where the company that prompted the delay is located.

On its Web site, Rockstar gave the following explanation: "Due to a last minute game submission request from Sony Computer Entertainment Europe to edit some of the in-game Liberty City radio station, television, and internet content, we are forced to delay the worldwide release of Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City for both PlayStation 3 and PC for an extra two weeks."

Though it didn't detail what changes were made, Rockstar went on to say that the delay was necessary because games must be resubmitted for approval in their entirety. It also said that although the change wasn't requested by Sony Computer Entertainment America, the publisher's desire to have a simultaneous worldwide release caused the postponement to be extended to this side of the Atlantic.

Rockstar Games also said that in preparation for the Episodes from Liberty City launches on the PlayStation Store and Games for Windows Live--where the PC edition was spotted last November--the Rockstar Social Club will be down for one week starting March 22.

For more on Episodes from Liberty City, check out GameSpot's video review below.