GTA IV could gross $400 million in first week

If this Variety report is correct, GTA IV is likely to achieve "box office" of $400 million in its first week, making it the largest entertainment launch of all time.

The record is currently held by Halo 3, which hit $300 million in week-one sales.

"Several industry analysts also told Daily Variety that they fully expect GTA IV to come close to and possibly exceed $400 million in sales out of the gate," said Variety gamer chap, Ben Fritz.

"Videogame sellers have slightly varying predictions at this point, though all expect it to be huge. Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes said that GTA IV will likely do 'two times the volume' that Halo 3 did for his chain, while GameStop senior veep of merchandising Bob McKenzie said the game is currently tracking slightly behind Microsoft's three-quel."

Oh, daddy. It's like sitting at the end of Easter Island with our fingers in our ears and our eyes closed. GTA IV releases globally on April 29.