First screens of Grand Theft Auto DS hit

When Nintendo announced Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the DS back at the E3 conference in July, many wondered whether publishing giant Rockstar was merely testing the waters to see if a Wii version of the franchise would be financially viable. While that may still be the case, details are slowly emerging about the pint-size GTA cousin, and it looks promising.

Kotaku posted a series of slightly fuzzy screens, which reveal two interesting points: 1) the game returns to the top-down, isometric mode made famous in the series' humble beginnings of GTA I and II; and 2) Rockstar has decided to go the cel-shaded route, plastering the GTA world with brightly colored car sprites.

But a kiddie version this ain't. The game is M-rated, joining a list that includes the few but proud DS titles like Capcom's Resident Evil: Deadly Silence and Eidos' Touch the Dead. The title, due sometime before Feb. 2009, will retain the sandbox nature of the series' brethren, complete with missions and minigames set in a different faction of Liberty City. (Word has it a drug-dealing minigame will be included, sure to piss off soccer moms across the country). Wi-Fi connection will also be used in various capacities. Rumors are already swirling the game will even have a not-so-DS friendly price tag of $50.

Meanwhile, Rockstar remains tight-lipped about Grand Theft Auto making the leap to Nintendo's Wii (to date, the only next-gen system without an announced GTA title). "We haven't really done any concrete, major thinking about the Wii, one way or another," Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser told Nintendo Power recently. Chances of a future Wii version likely rest upon the performance of Chinatown Wars.

For more screens, click here.

Related links:
1UP.com: First details on Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
News: Grand Theft Auto IV shatters sales records
YouTube: Nintendo reveals Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars DS

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.