More GTA IV monkey business…

Do you really have to ask what I’m playing at the moment? I’m guessing not seeing as you’re probably as mired in the murky underworld of Grand Theft Auto IV as me, if not moreso…

Don’t call GTA IV a mere game either – it’s a fully-fledged cultural phenomenon! I mean, set aside the massive mainstream media coverage and the serpentine midnight queues you doubtless joined (me too), but have you seen the reviews it has been getting? Perfect scores across the board doesn’t even begin to cover it. Put another way the lowest rating I’ve seen so far is 95%!

It deserves the lofty accolades too, as the deeper you delve the more there is to discover. Speaking of which I’m already deep, deep into the single player quest (bring on those exclusive episodes – soon!) and I’ve just started to dive into the game’s online multiplayer modes too.

‘Cops n’ Crooks’ is a current favourite, and is a real nerve-shredder if you’re brave/foolish enough to fight for the bad guys, since they can’t see the police ambush lying in wait. But for a good old-fashioned guns-a-blazing gameplay I’m finding ‘King Kong’ hard to beat.

This isn’t so much an official game mode as a player-devised team deathmatch played out in Free Mode. The rules are gloriously simple – one team equips rocket launchers and climbs to the top of the Rotterdam Tower, the other jumps into helicopters and, well, I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what to do next. If you can resist the near-irresistible urge to shoot your team-mates it’s an awesome blast.

But back to work. Then it’s straight home for another extended session. One last thing, though – is anyone else now answering their cellphone expecting to receive orders for the next ‘hit’, or is it just me…?

Graeme Boyd, Xbox.com Community Manager, Gamertag: AceyBongos