The Game Product
Grand Theft Auto IV: is a 2008 open world action-adventure video game published by Rockstar Games, and developed by Rockstar North. It has been released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles, and for the Windows operating system. Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Wii The game is a reboot of the Grand Theft Auto series, depicting a separate timeline and world from its predecessors (known as the "high-definition universe”) and is set in fictional Liberty City, based heavily on modern day New York City. The game follows Niko Bellic, a veteran of an unnamed war in Eastern Europe, who comes to the United States in search of the American Dream, but quickly becomes entangled in a world of gangs, crime, and corruption. Like other games in the series, GTA IV is composed of elements from driving games and third-person shooters, and features open world gameplay, in which players can interact with the game world at their leisure. Grand Theft Auto IV also features several online multiplayer modes.As the first game of the critically acclaimed series to appear on seventh generation consoles, Grand Theft Auto IV was widely anticipated. A major commercial and critical success, it broke industry records with sales of around 3.6 million units on its first day of release and grossing more than $500 million in revenue in the first week, selling an estimated 6 million units worldwide. As of September 2011, the game had shipped over 22 million copies. Grand Theft Auto IV won numerous awards from both gaming and mainstream press, including several recognitions as Game of the Year. As of 2012 the game has sold over 25 million copies.
Grand Theft Auto IV has received universal acclaim from video game critics. The review aggregator Metacritic rates its PlayStation 3 version as the best game of all time and its Xbox 360 version as the second best game of all time. Grand Theft Auto IV is the fourth highest rated game on Gamerankings and the fifth highest on GameRatio. Ahead of its worldwide release, most publications were not sent copies of the game. Instead, reviewers had to play the game on Rockstar premises or in booked hotel rooms.
The May 2008 issue of Official Xbox Magazine (UK) published the first Grand Theft Auto IV review, giving the game the maximum score of 10/10. The magazine also stated that the game has an "amazingly realistic world; stunning action set pieces; genuinely engrossing storyline; hugely entertaining multiplayer;" and that it is "vast in every respect." PlayStation Official Magazine (UK) also gave the game 10/10 in their May 2008 issue, describing the game as "a masterpiece that improves on all GTA's best bits."
Shares of Take-Two Interactive gained 3.4% amid positive reviews before the game's launch. Scott Hillis of Reuters said first week sales of the game were expected to reach $400 million. Some observers suggested that GTA IV's success could dampen the box office for the 2 May 2008 release of Iron Man, setting a precedent where movie studios will begin browsing video game release dates to check for conflicts
Developers of The Game Product
Rockstar Games is a multinational video game developer and publisher based in New York City, owned by Take-Two Interactive following its purchase of British video game publisher BMG Interactive. The brand is mostly known for Grand Theft Auto, Max Payne, L.A. Noire, The Warriors, Bully, Manhunt, Midnight Club, State of Emergency, and Red Dead, series and the use of open world, free roaming settings in their games. It comprises studios that have been acquired and renamed as well as others that have been created internally. While many of the studios Take-Two Interactive has acquired have been merged into the Rockstar brand, several other recent ones have retained their previous identities and have become part of the company's 2K Games division. The Rockstar Games label was founded in New York City in 1998 by the British video game producers Sam Houser, Dan Houser, Terry Donovan, Jamie King and Gary Foreman.
The headquarters of Rockstar Games (commonly referred to as Rockstar NYC) is located on Broadway in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City, part of the Take-Two Interactive offices. It is home to the marketing, public relations and product development departments.
In October 2011, Rockstar creative vice president Dan Houser told Famitsu that Rockstar is intentionally avoiding developing in the first-person shooter genre. "We're deliberately avoiding that right now", he said, according to a 1UP.com translation. "It's in our DNA to avoid doing what other companies are doing. I suppose you could say that Max Payne 3 is something close to an FPS, but there are really unique aspects to the setting and gameplay there, too, not just in the story. You have to have originality in your games; you have to have some kind of interesting message. You could say that the goalpoint of Rockstar is to have the players really feel what we're trying to do". Houser went on to say that Rockstar has "made new genres by ourselves with games like the GTA series. We didn't rely on testimonials in a business textbook to do what we've done. I think we succeeded precisely because we didn't concentrate on profit... If we make the sort of games we want to play, then we believe people are going to buy them."
http://www.gamestop.co.uk/SearchResult/QuickSearch?q=GrandTheftAutoIV
Advertisement for this game is not needed much as it is always a highly anticipated since there launch of Grand Theft Auto 3 for the PS2. They bring out trailers and bits of gameplay as the game begins to come close to its release date. (Trailer Below)
This is the very first advertisement trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV. As you can tell it doesnt last very long which shows a big the anticipation was for this game.
Freelancer
A freelancer, freelance worker, or freelance is somebody who is self-employed and is not committed to a particular employer long term. These workers are sometimes represented by a company or an agency that resells their labor and that of others to its clients with or without project management and labor contributed by its regular employees. Others are completely independent. "Independent contractor" would be the term used in a higher register of English.
Fields in which freelancing is common include: music, journalism, publishing, screenwriting, filmmaking, acting, photojournalism, cosmetics, fragrances, editing, photography, event planning, event management, copy editing, proofreading, indexing, copywriting, computer programming, web design, graphic design, website development, consulting, tour guiding, video editing, video production, translating and illustrating.
Freelance practice varies greatly. Some require clients to sign written contracts, while others may perform work based on verbal agreements, perhaps enforceable through the very nature of the work. Some freelancers may provide written estimates of work and request deposits from clients.
Payment for freelance work also varies greatly. Freelancers may charge by the day, hour, a piece rate, or on a per-project basis. Instead of a flat rate or fee, some freelancers have adopted a value-based pricing method based on the perceived value of the results to the client. By custom, payment arrangements may be upfront, percentage upfront, or upon completion. For more complex projects, a contract may set a payment schedule based on milestones or outcomes.
In writing and other artistic fields, "freelance" and its derivative terms are often reserved for workers who create works on their own initiative and then seek a publisher. They typically retain the copyright to their works and sell the rights to publishers in time-limited contracts. People who create intellectual property under a work for hire situation (according to the publishers' or other customers' specifications) are sometimes referred to as "independent contractors" or other similar terms. They have no copyright to the works if they are "works made for hire," a category of intellectual property defined in U.S. copyright law — Section 101, Copyright Act of 1976 (17 USC §101). This is the opposite of the situation with a regular employee; the relationship between a freelancer and a client is one between two business equals. The protections of the intellectual property rights that naturally vest in the creator of the work are considered to have been sold in toto in a work for hire agreement.
Benefits
Freelancers generally enjoy a greater variety of assignments than in regular employment, and—subject to the need to earn a regular income—usually have more freedom to choose their work schedule. The experience can also lead to a broad portfolio of work and the establishment of a network of clients.
Legal aspects
Freelance writing is becoming very popular in this day and age. The ability to be able to work from home or while traveling has made it popular.
Sometimes a freelancer will work with one or more other freelancers and/or vendors to form a "virtual agency" to serve a particular client's needs for short-term and permanent project work. This versatile agency model can help a freelancer land jobs that require targeted, specific experience and skills outside the scope of one individual. As the clients change, so too may the players chosen for a virtual agency's talent base. This is a common way for freelancers to get work if the non-competing freelancer in the relationship reciprocates the relevant type of work back assuming that both are in the same industry.
Freelancers and clients may form a relationship based on mutual needs and the professionalism and competence of both parties.
Impact of the Internet
The Internet has opened up many freelance opportunities, expanded available markets, and has contributed to service sector growth in many economies. Offshore outsourcing, Online outsourcing and crowdsourcing are heavily reliant on the Internet to provide economical access to remote workers, and frequently leverage technology to manage workflow to and from the employer. Much computer freelance work is being outsourced to poorer countries outside the United States and Europe.
Online freelance marketplaces are websites that match buyers and sellers of services provided via the internet. Buyers bid on services at a fixed price or at an hourly rate. Companies like Fiverr, Rev, Elance and Gigwalk allow people to sign up remotely for freelance assignments and get paid through a merchant account.
The Internet also enables many freelancers to be interviewed and hired without actually meeting an employer in person. This facilitates long distance business relationships all over the world, but can provide a challenge in screening applicants. Hiring more than one applicant for a short test assignment after the interview is now a common extra step in the hiring process.
Freelance employment has been common in the areas of writing, editing, translation, indexing, software development, website design, advertising, open innovations, information technology, and business process outsourcing. Freelance journalists, for example, may find it easier to start their own or shared news blogs, with many blogs growing into highly-trafficked and competitive news sites capable of hiring dedicated staff and other talent.
Changes to the publishing industry since the 1980s have resulted in an increase in copy editing of book and journal manuscripts and proofreading of typeset manuscripts being outsourced to freelance copy editors and proofreaders.
Many periodicals and newspapers offer the option of ghost signing, when a freelance writer signs with an editor but their name is not listed on the byline of their article(s). This allows the writer to receive benefits while still being classified as a freelancer, and independent of any set organization. In some countries this can lead to taxation issues (e.g., so-called IR35 violations in the UK). Ghost signing has little bearing on whether a writer is a freelancer or employee in the US.
Freelancers often must handle contracts, legal issues, accounting, marketing, and other business functions by themselves. If they do choose to pay for professional services, they can sometimes turn into significant out-of-pocket expenses. Working hours can extend beyond the standard working day and working week.
In Europe, the perceived disadvantages of being freelance have led the European Union to research the area, producing draft papers that would, if enforced, make it illegal for companies or organizations to employ freelancers directly, unless the freelancer was entitled to benefits such as pension contributions and holiday pay. In the UK, where the terms of integration into the EU have and are being hotly debated, this would lead to a significant reshaping of the way freelance work is dealt with and have a major impact on industry; employers would be required either to give freelances the contractual rights of employees or employ only freelancers already being employed by agencies or other organizations granting them these rights. However, the White Papers that recommend such moves have not yet been adopted in the EU, and the potential impact on UK employment laws is being opposed by key UK organizations lobbying the government to negotiate over the acceptance of EU legislation in such areas. The legal definition of a sole trader requires that he/she must have more than one client or customer which promotes the freelancing ethos.
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