The release is just days away; our collective mouths are watering, and I think we are all of us ready to play the newest Grand Theft Auto. But there’s much more importance to the release than discovering Niko’s tale in Liberty City – Microsoft and Sony are both relying heavily on the game to give their respective system a leg up on the other. Microsoft is hoping the promise of exclusive downloadable content and the convenience of Xbox Live will be enough to woo gamers into going the 360 route, while Sony is banking on GTA being associated with the PlayStation brand for its edge.

With predicted sales of $400 million in the first week, suffice it to say that this is going to be big.

Analysts are chiming in with their prediction of which of the two console manufacturers will come out the victor in this particular battle. My adversary, Michael Pachter, explained his prediction quite simply, telling Reuters, “I think PS3 ‘wins’ this battle.”

“So many people who owned the PS2 went into PlayStation family because of GTA. The release of GTA4 could expedite their decision to upgrade,” said BMO Capital Markets’ Edward Williams.

Analysts weren’t all in agreement, though, as IDC’s Billy Pidgeon proved. “Online is such a strong part of the game and Microsoft has done such a great job of developing the online community, so for people who own multiple consoles, they will buy it for the 360,” he said.

One way or another, there’s one thing that’s undeniable: no matter which system you play the game on, it’s going to rock.

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