14 DAY TRIAL // As GTA IV is nearing completion and release, New York Times reports that the borough of Staten Island has been left out of the game, although Liberty City is practically the exact replica of the Big Apple, only virtual of course. Gamers are upset by this, no doubt but some are happy. No, not Thompson...well maybe him too, but one New York politician is for sure: Senator Andrew Lanza (that's him in the picture to your left).
The State Senate recently formed a task force on video game violence and appointed Senator Andrew Lanza, Republican of Staten Island, to lead it, as GamePolitics reports.
"I'm glad Staten Island is left out, frankly," Mr. Lanza said. Describing the game as "poisonous," he reflected on the real reason his borough did not make the cut. "Perhaps it's because they know Staten Island is the safest place in the entire city," he said.
This kind of intrigued me as well, not knowing that Staten Island hadn't been included, but hey, it's "NOT REALLY" New York city, but a virtual city that just looks an awful lot like it. Those at Rockstar's must be having some laughs. Anyway, this lead me to scroll down through some comments to the article posted on GamePolitics.com. Some said that maybe game designers got lazy and decided not to implement it, while others are positively sure that a downloadable Staten Island via XBLA or PSN will be in order, but the one I'm pasting below I found most realistic.
Vladimir says: "They probably just didn't want to add a big ol' island tucked away in the corner of the map." That's right. Think about it, they then had to make a bridge or two as GTA IV doesn't feature that much (if not at all) airborne action. Then there would be all the unused space around it, that would also have to be made good for interaction etc. All this costs money and time and for what? "...a big ol' island tucked away in the corner of the map."