GTA IV Is Returning to Steam Without Multiplayer

Last month, Rockstar stopped selling GTA IV on Steam.

Next month the game is set to return, but there will be a key feature missing.

GTA IV was developed using Microsoft's Games for Windows Live (GFWL) platform to handle multiplayer, but Rockstar didn't do the work to move away from it when Microsoft shut the service down in 2014.

That decision finally caught up with the developer this year when it could no longer generate new keys to keep selling the game and ultimately had to remove it from Steam.

As Eurogamer reports, Rockstar has confirmed that GTA IV will return to Steam on March 19.

All previous versions of the game, including Episodes from Liberty City, are being replaced with one new version called Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition.

The name is misleading, though, as this version will be anything but complete.

In order to solve the multiplayer problem Rockstar decided on the simplest solution.

So when the Complete Edition becomes available next month, multiplayer will no longer be an option and leaderboards have also been removed.

Some radio stations previously found in Episodes from Liberty City—including RamJam FM, Self-Actualization FM, and Vice City FM—won't be available in the game either, but this is thought to only be a temporary exclusion.

This change doesn't only impact anyone who buys the game on or after March 19.

Existing owners will have their version updated to the new Complete Edition.

It's a complicated situation, though, as upgrading depends on how you purchased and activated the game.

The good news is, saved games will continue to work.

If you bought the game through Steam, the upgrade to Complete Edition will happen automatically.

If you instead purchased a physical copy, then entering the key on the back of the box will be required.

However, if you originally activated your copy through GFWL then some extra work is required.

Rockstar needs you to link to or create a Social Club account through the Microsoft website before the new version of the game can be installed.

Anyone who doesn't own the game yet also has a new option for purchasing it through the Rockstar Games Launcher, but regardless of how you acquire or update your copy, multiplayer seems to be gone forever.

Last month, Rockstar stopped selling GTA IV on Steam.

Next month the game is set to return, but there will be a key feature missing.

GTA IV was developed using Microsoft's Games for Windows Live (GFWL) platform to handle multiplayer, but Rockstar didn't do the work to move away from it when Microsoft shut the service down in 2014.

That decision finally caught up with the developer this year when it could no longer generate new keys to keep selling the game and ultimately had to remove it from Steam.

As Eurogamer reports, Rockstar has confirmed that GTA IV will return to Steam on March 19.

All previous versions of the game, including Episodes from Liberty City, are being replaced with one new version called Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition.

The name is misleading, though, as this version will be anything but complete.

In order to solve the multiplayer problem Rockstar decided on the simplest solution.

So when the Complete Edition becomes available next month, multiplayer will no longer be an option and leaderboards have also been removed.

Some radio stations previously found in Episodes from Liberty City—including RamJam FM, Self-Actualization FM, and Vice City FM—won't be available in the game either, but this is thought to only be a temporary exclusion.

This change doesn't only impact anyone who buys the game on or after March 19.

Existing owners will have their version updated to the new Complete Edition.

It's a complicated situation, though, as upgrading depends on how you purchased and activated the game.

The good news is, saved games will continue to work.

If you bought the game through Steam, the upgrade to Complete Edition will happen automatically.

If you instead purchased a physical copy, then entering the key on the back of the box will be required.

However, if you originally activated your copy through GFWL then some extra work is required.

Rockstar needs you to link to or create a Social Club account through the Microsoft website before the new version of the game can be installed.

Anyone who doesn't own the game yet also has a new option for purchasing it through the Rockstar Games Launcher, but regardless of how you acquire or update your copy, multiplayer seems to be gone forever.