This week's Variety (the weekly magazine, not the daily paper) features three separate stories on "Grand Theft Auto IV" (all by that guy up there on the top right of the page). It's an extravaganza that I hope is worthy of the biggest videogame of the year. And it's not over yet. Coming this weekend - when I finish writing it all up - will be extended highlights from my 90 minute sitdown interview with Rockstar's co-founder and VP creative Dan Houser, who videogame fans know does not talk to the press often, to say the least.

For now, I hope you'll check out the Variety pieces:

-Everyone's asking whether "GTA IV" will impact the "Iron Man" opening. But while the jury's still out on that one, the jury is in on other media: a big videogame opening impacts both TV ratings and DVD sales. Read it here.

-Why does Dan Houser think "GTA IV" should be compared to movies, not videogames? And why does he aspire to "not being called an asshole?" Find out in my profile of how Rockstar became, well... a Rockstar, and why Houser says "GTA IV" is the first game in the franchise that's not heavily influenced by other media. It's a truly original creation. Check it out here.

-GTA IV features hundreds of songs on 18 different in-game radio stations (16 music, two talk). How does the team at Rockstar pick them? And will their deal with Amazon.com to allow downloads of songs heard in the game via a single click revolutionize the way we find music and the way artists and labels make money from videogames? It's all right here.