Are you ready for Grand Theft Auto V? We wanted to celebrate the release of this groundbreaking game on September 17th in a big way. To mark the occasion we’re releasing a brand new PlayStation 3 Grand Theft Auto V Bundle, a custom Grand Theft Auto V Pulse – Elite Edition headset and a custom audio mode!

For $299 (MSRP), this bundle comes complete with a 500GB PlayStation 3, a Blu-ray copy of Grand Theft Auto V and a 30-day PlayStation Plus trial membership. You can pick up this awesome bundle when it hits stores on September 17th.

In addition to the bundle, we partnered with our friends over at Rockstar Games to create a custom designed Grand Theft Auto V Pulse – Elite Edition headset that features styling created specifically for Grand Theft Auto V. The custom headset design was inspired by Grand Theft Auto V’s focus on the almighty dollar. The new custom headset will be available September 17th exclusively at GameStop for $179.99 (MSRP).

We are also introducing a specifically crafted audio experience exclusive for the PlayStation 3. The custom Grand Theft Auto V audio mode for Pulse – Elite Edition takes full advantage of the BassImpact technology embedded in the Pulse – Elite Edition headset to provide the ultimate Grand Theft Auto V experience. You can download the Grand Theft Auto V audio mode at no cost from the free Pulse – Elite Manager App. This exclusive mode enhances the game’s most epic moments like car crashes, explosions and more.

Let us know what you think of the bundle, custom headset and custom audio mode. Will you be picking up the bundle, the headset or both?

As an additional bonus, those who pre-order any edition of Grand Theft Auto V (including the Special Edition, Collector’s Edition or the standard retail edition) between now and September 17th will get access to pilot the Atomic Blimp in-game vehicle.

Here are details of what exclusive items you can look forward to in each edition, and you can read about each of them in more detail over on the Rockstar Newswire and at http://www.rockstargames.com/V/preorder.

The Grand Theft Auto V Special Edition

The Grand Theft Auto V Collector’s Edition

The Grand Theft Auto V Collector’s Edition and Grand Theft Auto V Special Edition are the perfect way for fans to celebrate the return of GTA, with special digital content and exclusive Grand Theft Auto V physical items. Grand Theft Auto V Collector’s Edition will retail for $149.99, while the Grand Theft Auto V Special Edition will retail for $79.99 (check with your local retailer for international prices). All versions are now available for pre-order until September 17, 2013, while supplies last.

Look for online pre-order links to be updated at www.rockstargames.com/V/preorder starting later today.

Grand Theft Auto V is coming September 17th, 2013. Pre-order now and visit www.rockstargames.com/V for more details.

All this week, as part of the Spring Fever 2013 sale, select titles from the Grand Theft Auto series available on PlayStation Network are 30% off. PS Plus members enjoy a 50% off discount on all titles in the sale. See a complete list of games available in the sale below, along with wallpapers for each title.

Click on each image to go through to the full wallpaper collection for that game at www.rockstargames.com/downloads, where you’ll find a range of sizes and resolutions, including versions for PS3, PSP and PS Vita.

PS3 Titles

• Grand Theft Auto IV (now $13.99 / PS+ members $9.80)
• Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ultimate Edition (now $20.99 / PS+ members $14.70)
• Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City (now $13.99 / PS+ members $9.80)

PS3 Add-Ons (Both require GTAIV, either disc or digital, to access)

• Grand Theft Auto: The Lost and Damned (now $6.99 / PS+ members $4.90)
• Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony (now $13.99 / PS+ members $9.80)

PS Vita / PSP

• Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (now $13.99 / PS+ members $9.80)
• Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (now $13.99 / PS+ members $9.80)
• Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (now $13.99 / PS+ members $9.80)

PS2 Classics

• Grand Theft Auto III (now $6.99 / PS+ members $4.90)
• Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (now $6.99 / PS+ members $4.90)
• Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (now $10.49 / PS+ members $7.35)

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, the story of one man’s rise to the top of the criminal pile, is now available to download from PlayStation Store for $9.99 as part of the PS2 Classics collection.

That’s the original game in digital form, and to complete the nostalgia, we’ve made the map that was originally packed in the game box available as a hi-res jpeg for you to print out and peruse next time you’re lost in Little Havana. We’ve also got the maps for GTAIII and San Andreas, both of which are already available to download from PS Store.

Ten years have passed since Vice City was originally released on PlayStation 2. Over at the Rockstar Newswire, we’ve been casting an eye back and celebrating that anniversary with a series of features and never-before-released peeks behind the digital curtain of the game’s development.

One of these was a three-part series of interactive Flash features showcasing the game’s Animation, Sound and City Design. ‘The Lab’, as the series is known, was originally exhibited at London’s Design Museum when they nominated the game for their ‘biggest contribution to design in 2002’ award. This is the first time it has been made widely available online.

Click on the images below to check them out, but bear in mind they’re Flash so they may not work if you’re reading this on mobile.

We hope you enjoy revisiting Vice City on PS3. Look out for more classic Rockstar titles arriving on PSN in the next few weeks.

We’d like to let all PlayStation fans know that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is coming to PlayStation Store as a ‘PS2 Classic’ in today’s update. That means you can revisit the cities of Los Santos, San Fierro and Las Venturas, as well as the surrounding countryside and mountains, exactly as they appeared on the PlayStation 2 back in 2004, on your PS3.

To help you prepare we’ve raided our archives for a video called ‘The Introduction’. This 20-minute prologue video highlights the action in the days before the story in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas begins. The Introduction is told from various characters’ viewpoints, which are intertwined together to reveal the network of organized crime forces operating throughout the state of San Andreas. Tension builds as threats are carried out, stakes are raised and communication breaks down. In Los Santos, a drive-by shooting in Grove Street Family’s territory ignites a series of events to be further explored in the game.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas hits PlayStation Store today for $14.99 / €14.99 / £11.99.

For more info on Grand Theft Auto V, visit rockstargames.com/v.

Rockstar Support: www.rockstargames.com/support
Rockstar Support on Twitter: twitter.com/RockstarSupport

PlayStation 3 Support: http://us.playstation.com/support/

February is a strange month for magazines. Most February issues are shipped in December and come out in January, which puts them smack on the border of two years. Naturally, that means it’s a time for PTOM to look back and ahead all at once—a dizzying proposition, to be sure.

But that doesn’t mean it ain’t an exciting time. 2010 was a phenomenal year for the PS3, something we celebrate in our Game of the Year feature. While our big winner might not surprise (hint: it’s an epic adventure of godly proportions), our other picks will surely delight. Each editor nominated his four favorite games, many of which will be great reminders of the stellar year that was. We also picked our top PSP and PSN game—and while our PSP nod makes perfect sense, our PSN choice (which also, ahem, makes perfect sense) is another big surprise.

Looking ahead, our cover story is a ten-page expose on what’s sure to be one of the biggest games of early 2011. We got to dig deeper than anyone else into L.A. Noire’s cinematic landscape, experiencing an exclusive case and chatting with the minds behind Rockstar’s ambitious game. The technology alone is impressive enough, using a proprietary scanning system to capture facial expressions the player is then supposed to “read” as part of the game. (It’s a detective story, so interrogation plays a key role.) That’s nifty enough, but it’s the ambition behind the storytelling and the world-building that really captured my attention. It’s an inelegant comparison, perhaps, but L.A. Noire is poised to be this year’s Heavy Rain in terms of its ambition and promise. I can’t wait to play it!

We also look ahead with a six-page exclusive on Shadows of the Damned, the quirky new horror title from Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami. And for those committed to keeping their New Year’s resolutions, we’ve got a guide to the top exercise games. All that, plus our final verdicts on LittleBigPlanet 2, Mass Effect 2, and Dead Space 2. Enjoy!

In other news, the PlayStation Home Mall will be updated this week with new items for your avatars and personal spaces, including additional Red Dead Redemption items (such as the John Marston outfit), new Irem cowboy and cowgirl items (are you sensing a loose theme to this week yet?), LucasArts items (including Mola Ram items from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom — how sweet is that?!), and even this Minotaur head, for all of you that are participating in the ongoing Top Avatar competition, which is focusing on the Fantasy genre this week (details can be found here).

See you in Home!