Despite the critical calamity that is the Max Payne movie, the video game arm of the franchise is still going strong. Rockstar Games has sent out a press release announcing that they're planning to release Max Payne 3 by Winter of this year.

More details after the link.

Rockstar Games, the studio behind the Grand Theft Auto series, have signed in a new long-term contract with publisher Take-Two Interactive. Guess studios like Electronic Arts and Activision Blizzard lost their chance to nab the Houser brothers.

The stint between Electronic Arts and Take-Two Interactive is the stuff of anticlimactic legends in video gaming. Now that the short-lived love affair's over, EA explains that their attempt to acquire T2 was only an attempt to help them out with holiday sales of Grand Theft Auto IV.

Dan and Sam Houser are the founders of Rockstar Games, and the brains behind the Grand Theft Auto series. If you were a video game company, you'd want them on your team.

Their contract with Take-Two Interactive will expire in just a few months, and already Activision Blizzard's CEO is making a play for them. So, what do you think of the creators of the Grand Theft Auto working for the studios that gave us Guitar Hero and Warcraft?

Michael Pachter's made some pretty big predictions before, but this one might take the cake. You know how EA backed off from its attempt to take over Take-Two? It may not have lost ownership, but according to Pachter, it might lose its key creative talents: Sam and Dan Houser, the powerhouse siblings of Rockstar Games. More in the full article.

Time to dispel rumors with some actual press release-based fact. Rockstar Games has announced that Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) is coming to the PC in November. Learn more after the jump!

It's a different take of what Rockstar's founder actually did say in an interview as one of MCV Entertainment's exclusive feature, but it's factually accurate. Sam Houser, who many claim to be the driving force behind the Grand Theft Auto franchise, was executive producer of Grand Theft Auto 3. That game  became the direction of the subsequent iterations of the sandbox game later on. He says that powerful people have been out to put Rockstar out of business, and they're quite plenty.

With EA's deadline for Take-Two Interactive coming up fast, a lot of people are eagerly waiting for Take-Two's reply to the game publishing giant's takeover bid. Whatever happens, though, it seems like Rockstar Games president and co-founder Sam Houser actually sees a few good things about an alliance with EA.

It is apparent that Rockstar Games was able to fit everything in a single disc to bring Grand Theft Auto 4 to the Microsoft Xbox 360 (also on Sony PlayStation 3), but head honcho Sam Houser is hoping for more. After calling the 360's storage medium "a slightly bigger DVD disc," he also expressed his concern over how the next GTA game will fit. Find details at the full article.

Rockstar Games has acquired Mad Doc Software and has thus created Rockstar New England from it. Looks like the development empire of the company is by no means slowing down despite the heavy criticisms for its prominent game titles (GTA is a dead giveaway). See how this new partnership sprang up over at the full article.

Thanks to zakir8 for the tip!