Recently, Sony Entertainment announced the cancellation of the next installment to the mediocre but nevertheless solid selling title "The Getaway". Now, while I certainly won't be mourning the loss of this half arsed GTA clone, the cancellation does raise a few questions for me. I mean, the Getaway was never a chart topper (although it did top the UK charts once or twice), and Black Monday was not particlularly well received, but it seems to me that it certainly sold well enouigh to justify an attempt at an update for the current generation.

All of this got my clogs ticking... and ticking... and suddenly a rather obvious realisation dawned on me: The Getaway 3 would be an update to an older GTA style game set in London and which, if it had went ahead would have probably been released at some stage in 2010/11. Now given the fact/theory that Grand Theft Auto usually doesn't leave much more than a 2/3 year gap between console releases, we can assume that the next installment of GTA will most likely arrive around 2010/11. Now Sony, as a major publisher, not to mention one of the big three console manufacturers would probably have the inside scoop on Rockstars plans he foreseeable future, I mean it only makes sense from a marketing/negotiation stand point.

So why would Sony cancel a relatively well selling GTA clone set in London set for release in 2010/11? Easy, they don't want to put it up against something they know they can't win against: A Grand Theft Auto game set in London to be released in 2010/11.

You Heard it here first.