The PS3 GTA IV freezing saga continues!

I’m not sure that I’m not the only person with this problem but when I try to play Grand Theft Auto 4 on the Playstation 3, it freezes on the first screen.  There have been some luckier users that have been able to resolve this problem by switching off the WIFI connection on their PS3.  However, there are a lot of people who can’t play the game at all.  It’s a complete showstopper!  So, the saga begins here.   I have included the absolutely useless support communications as part of the story.  Just for the record, I have tried different versions of the firmware (including the latest 1.41) and also downloaded the patch for the game (1.02).  As well, I thought that there may be an IRQ problem and thus tried different sets and combination of visual support (HDMI, etc). 

So, I got my first PS3 40GB box on June 22nd at Best Buy.  I purchased GTA4 on June 24th.  I immediately got a freezing problem right after Nikko gets into his car and he’s ready to go to Roman’s place.  I can hear sound but I can’t move.  I read a few forums and had realized that this was a pretty common problem.  So, I went to the following URL and followed all the steps:

Rockstar Support for GTA Freezing issue

Nothing worked!  I decided to call Rockstar supports which they had completely denied and dismissed the situation and told me to go get another PS3.  After that experience, I thought it’d likely be better if I discussed it with them through E-mail and maybe they’ll have a better understanding.  So, I decided to start e-mailing support.  Here was my first e-mail to them, and their responses:

QUESTION 1 TO ROCKSTAR SUPPORT:

Customer (Claire Lam)

30/06/2008 07.27 AM

Hi,I’ve completed all your troubleshooting steps as posted on http://www.rockstargames.com/support/, I’ve called your support which was NO help at all, I’ve read different forums and groups and followed different instructions there as well.I was told that this freezing problem is not an issue via Mathias from tech support. He told me to contact Sony. I contacted Sony who told me to try the game on another PS3 (which, riiiight, I had another one lying around, of course). Instead, I returned the PS3 and got a new one. I also went to blockbuster and rented another CD. Both the new CD, new PS3 still hangs on the first screen after Nikko gets in the car. I can hear sound but the screen locks. I can push the PS button to get to the map, but can’t do anything thereafter.I have been able to replicate this issue consistently at the same point every single time. Now that I have got new hardware, new CD, followed all your steps, I have run out of ideas. It’d be appreciated if you can assist me with this problem.Regards, Claire Lam _______________________________ President/CEO Ennertia Techwave Inc. “Making ideas come to life”<http://www.ennertia.com> www.ennertia.comWaterpark Place 20 Bay Street, 11th Floor Toronto, ON M5J 2N8Office: 416-840-7884 Cell: 416-300-5860 Fax: 416-214-2043 Flash::Flex::CMS::Design::Engineering::Programming::Joomla!::Training

30/06/2008 07.27 AM

RESPONSE FROM ROCKSTAR:

Response (Christopher)

30/06/2008 08.21 AM

Hello,If the game is locking at this point in particular, then we have been advised by Sony to direct their customers to them to get things checked out.Asking you to try the game on another PS3 is a standard step, though if you have exchanged it for another console from the same store as your original PS3, then it may still not be the disc as there may be a few consoles at that store with the same issue. The best thing to try however is to ask a store to try the game on their console as they will most likely have had the game working on there at some point verifying that the game works on their specific console.

So, fine, after this, I decided to humour them and return my PS3 back to Best Buy.  Instead of getting the same batch, I thought it’d be best to go to another store.  Low and behold!  Walmart was right next to it so I went there and got another PS3.  This was a better deal as it had Spiderman in it too.  And was 3 cents cheaper <shrug>.  I also thought that maybe… possibly… there may have been a problem with the disc, so I decided to rent a GTA copy at Blockbuster as well.   But, the same issue occured (on both discs), so I decided to reply back to rockstar:

QUESTION 2 TO ROCKSTAR SUPPORT:

Customer (Claire Lam)

30/06/2008 02.08 PM

Sadly, this is not the case. I returned the console and purchased at another store completely. I do find it hard to believe that I am the only person having this issue there have been no proactive engineering to correct this.- 1 Console at Bestbuy (purchased June 22), returned for money back - 1 Console at Walmart with Spiderman include (purchased yesterday), I’m guessing this is a different batch), still doesn’t work - 1 purchased game from Blockbuster (doesn’t work) - 1 rented game from Blockbuster (doesn’t work).I don’t have time to drive around town getting them to try the game on their consoles. What’s your next suggestion solution? If I hear “try the game on another console”, this will not be accepted. Surely there’s an issue if I can replicate the problem every single time, differnet consoles, different disks.Where would I find debug information about where the problem lies? Surely there’s a way I can run ‘truss’ on the PID to understand where the problem is so this can be pinpointed and fixed permenantly.So, please, tell me… what are the next steps?

ROCKSTAR RESPONSE (this one is classic!):

Response (Philip)

30/06/2008 10.18 PM

You will need to send the game to the below address along with a covering letter explaining the problem. Please note for any scratched or cracked CD’s there will be a replacement fee of $7.50 This should be in the form of a cheque and made payable to Take 2 Interactive. You will need to send the cheque along with the damaged cd (inc. full packaging) and a covering letter detailing the problem. If the disc is within the 90 day warranty and proof of purchase is sent with it and the product is deemed to be a manufacturing fault then no charge will be made for replacementFor Rockstar ProductsRockstar Games Media Replacement c/o JOAG Ohio 9271 Meridian Way West Chester, OH 45069Additionally, all questions from customers who are trying to reach our online store should be now referred to:513-346-6944

TAKE 2: retail@take2store.com
ROCKSTAR: store@rockstargames.com

MY RESPONSE TO ROCKSTAR GAMES 3:

Customer (Claire Lam)	30/06/2008 10.53 PM
Sorry, let me get this straight. You want me to return the product because there’s no better explanation of how to resolve the freeze issue on the first introduction screen?I just wanted to get this on the record so I can post this publicly.Claire

ROCKSTAR RESPONSE:

Response (Lee)	01/07/2008 09.39 AM
Hello,Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback. Feedback from our players is very important to us in continuing to provide a positive gaming experience, so we will forward your feedback to the appropriate team.

MY RESPONSE TO ROCKSTAR 4:

Customer (Claire Lam)

02/07/2008 06.57 AM

This is not feedback, this is a legimate problem that requires attention.Can someone please help me with resolving this issue, or at least giving me a plausible answer as to the why this problem is occuring? Tbe answers given so far are completely unacceptable.It freezes at the same time, everytime, even with different consoles and a couple different disks. I can’t get past the opening screen. This is a SHOWSTOPPER defect. As I have mentioned in the past posts, if I can help you resolve this issue, it will benefit us all. So, please tell me, how can I get you more information to resolve this issue???Claire

ROCKSTAR RESPONSE:

Response (Lee)

02/07/2008 09.56 AM

Hello,Could you please send us some information about your Console.PS3 version (20, 40, 60, 80gb model) PS3 Firmware version How was the latest firmware installed (Off GTA IV disk, from PS3 network, from another game) PS3 purchase date (nearest Month) PS3 Controller Type (SixAxis or DualShock 3) Free Hard Drive Space (GB) Wireless or Wired network connection Internet Connection Type (Cable, ADSL, Etc) HD or Standard TV Resolution (HD only) Any other OS installed

MY RESPONSE BACK TO ROCKSTAR 5:

Customer (Claire Lam)

02/07/2008 03.53 PM

Hi Lee,Thank you for taking the time to help.PS3 version (20, 40, 60, 80gb model): 40GBPS3 Firmware version 2.36 (just downloaded 2.40)How was the latest firmware installed: PS3 Network PS3 purchase date (nearest Month) June 22nd, 2008 (This one I returned for the same problem) June 29th, 2008PS3 Controller Type (SixAxis or DualShock 3) SixAxis Free Hard Drive Space (GB) 31GB Wireless or Wired network connection: Wireless, which was disabled to try the game, which didn’t work Internet Connection Type (Cable, ADSL, Etc) 25MB down, 8MB (up)* HD or Standard TV HD (1080i) also tried 480i without luck Resolution (HD only): 1366×768 1920×1080 No luck on either resolutions Any other OS installed: No Regards, Claire

ROCKSTAR RESPONSE:

Response (Lee)	03/07/2008 10.00 AM
Hello,No problem thank you for sending us the Information we Require about your Console we will have a look into this for you.

MY RESPONSE BACK TO ROCKSTAR 6:

Customer (Claire Lam)	03/07/2008 08.50 PM
Can you please give me an idea of what’s being done to resolve this problem? The ticket said that the status is “solved” but I don’t feel that this is the case. I am still in a showstopper scenerio and see no light at the end of the tunnel.Can you believe it? I actually purchased this video game so I can play it. What a silly idea to have!Claire

ROCKSTAR RESPONSE (at least these are resonable):

Response (Lee)	04/07/2008 09.24 AM
Hello,The reason why it says the Status is solved is because when we send a E-mail out to you it changes but when you send us a reply it reopens the Case for us to look at i will have to pass this up to my 2nd Level and then we will get back to you when i get the response thanks.

…6 days later without a peep from ROCKSTAR GAMES…

I decided to go get ANOTHER PS3 40GB.  This one worked for a whole 3 hours.  I played the game the evening I got the PS3 and shut off the machine after the “First Date” scene save point.  I went to continue the game the next day, and WOW, wouldn’t you know… it freezes after the initial loading screen.  No matter which save point I use, it always freezes on the initial loading screen.  I can hear background noise, but can’t move.  Just like all the times above.  So, I decided to update my ticket:

MY RESPONSE TO ROCKSTAR GAMES 7:

Customer (Claire Lam)

10/07/2008 07.38 AM

I figured that I better update my saga of GTA 4 before I get this out publicly. I decided that waiting for a response from Rockstar support was likely not going to happen in my lifetime. I decided to once again (third time), go out, and get another PS3 40GB. Well, this time… it worked BUT ONLY FOR 3 HOURS. I shut off the game at the “First date” save point and the next day when I went to boot it up… it freezes after the opening screen. Nikko cannot walk, or do anything while in the apartment. I decided to once again, follow all of the troubleshooting steps. And, now I’m back at square one where on opening screen, Nikko gets in the car and I can’t do anything.So, it obviously worked once… a hardware issue is getting to become out of the question. I likely don’t think that 3 PS3s from different sources is a sheer co-incidence.

It’s been 5 days since I had posted this (July 15th now) and there has been no response from Rockstar Games yet.  The support has been dismal.  If anyone has similar stories, I’d very much appreciate it if you can share it with me. 

Just to let viewers know, after some research on my own accord, this has now been resolved!  You can read it here. 

Oh, by the way, just to show you how highly incompetent the support staff are at Rock Star, I got a response, 21 days later!

Response (Anthony)

31/07/2008 07.07 PM

Hello, Regarding the crash issue encounter while using the Playstation 3 and Grand Theft Auto IV, can you confirm which firmware your current Playstation 3 is running? Is your system connected to the Internet to obtain the latest console firmware and title updates? Technical issues may occur if cheat codes have been used and saved with the game, during the period the game was successfully running were any cheat codes used? Have you tried a different User account on the same Playstation 3? If an Internet connection is active with the console have you tried disabling this temporarily while playing the game to see if this has an impact? Kind Regards Rockstar Games Tech Support

It warms the cockles of my heart.