GTA IV: The Complete Edition available again on PC as free update

Rockstar Games has updated the PC version of GTA IV and re-released it as the GTA IV: The Complete Edition. Owners of either the base game or the standalone Episodes from Liberty City expansion will automatically receive the complete edition.

The last-gen Grand Theft Auto title may be forgotten by the majority of gamers but Rockstar is still supporting their first HD open-world mayhem simulator in the form of a new update. The main goal of the studio is to package the base game and its standalone expansion into one package. The defunct Games for Windows Live online portion is also being removed which sadly means that multiplayer is basically dead. So, if you hoped to relieve some of your old memories with the GTA IV: The Complete Edition, that’s going to be impossible.

Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition will replace both Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City wherever it is currently digitally available. Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition will as also be available via the Rockstar Games Launcher.
Current game save files will be compatible with Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition.

It’s a real shame that Rockstar has no interest to put the extra work into the complete edition to keep its unique multiplayer alive, but seeing how its successor GTA Online has become so much bigger than GTA IV ever was. So, realistically keeping multiplayer alive would have been little more than just a nice gesture.

But by offering the entire collection to owners of either the base or expansion, Rockstar is at least winning some goodwill. Furthermore, on March 24th, the GTA IV: The Complete Edition will also launch on the Rockstar Games Launcher. Owners of a physical or GFWL digital edition will be able to receive an RGL version.