"It has a little bit of everything, a little racing, and little shooting, a little sailing, a little flying, and you can pick up 'ladies of the night' on the street," said one fan.

"It gives you a chance to do crime without paying the time," said another.

But those same features that entice gamers are the exact ones that enrage parents and lawmakers who place this series at the epicenter of their arguments insisting violence in video games promotes violence in kids. But developers, who aren't doing interviews, have always insisted the title is just like R-rated movies -- made for adults not kids.

"It's like watching an episode of the 'Sopranos,'" said Dan Ackerman of technology review site CNET. "It's actually not much worse than that, but since it's a video game people think it's a lot worse for kids or a lot easier for kids to get their hands on."

Grand Theft Auto IV

What exactly is it about this game that makes it so popular? Well, there is that forbidden fruit thing of getting to do things in the game that hopefully none of the players would ever dream of doing in the real world.

That something else is the games are always, technically, groundbreaking. For instance, this version is so immersive that not only can users explore nearly everything they see in the virtual Big Apple.

"The next generation gaming consoles, the XBox 360 and PS3 let you do a lot more," sad Ackerman. "You get a much better sense that you're a guy on the street with the skyscrapers towering above you. You really have a sense of scale we haven't felt before."

Another other cutting-edge feature is the ability for users to purchase songs that they listen to on their virtual radio.

"Liberty City," which is rated M for mature, is available on the XBox360 and Playstation3 for $60.