"This is probably the first game we've done where both platforms have been running in parallel", Rockstar North president Leslie Benzies told Computer and Video Games, all but confirming our long-standing theory that GTA4 was developed on Xbox 360 first, primarily because dev kits were available that much earlier than they were for PS3. "There's very, very little difference in the development state of them both. They're both very similar. It would be hard to tell them apart."
Backing up Benzies' viewpoint, the world of multi-format development has moved on massively since GTA4's debut in 2008. Where the Xbox 360 once dominated the vast majority of cross-platform titles with tangible image and performance-based advantages, game-making techniques have evolved considerably over the last five years, with developers embracing a multi-core approach that favours both Xbox 360's six CPU hardware threads and the PS3's six available SPU satellite processors - not to mention the six available x86 CPUs available in next-gen consoles. That said, Rockstar has apparently used the PS3 build for all its presentations and demos we've heard about thus far and everything we've seen suggests that the sub-HD resolution of GTA4 no longer applies - this game is running at native 720p. Whether that means it's the version to go for remains to be seen - and it's something we'll report back on as soon as can, using the evolved tools and methodology that its predecessor inspired us to develop so many years ago.
