Lost & Damned Accidentally Censors Grand Theft Auto IV_
By Dr. Evelyn Reed | October 26, 2025 | 7 min read
Reports are starting to come in from Europe claiming that the release of Grand Theft Auto IV’s expansion pack, The Lost & Damned, has somehow censored previously uncensored versions of the game.
While at this stage these reports are unconfirmed, the [[link]] complaints are in essence the exact opposite of what’s happened in Australia. Seems [[link]] that some gamers from some European countries – including the UK and Germany – who previously enjoyed versions of the game resplendent with hooker-focused camera angles and lavish amounts of arterial bloodspray, now find their copies of the game neutered.
https://kotaku.com/lost-damned-reverts-australian-gtaiv-censorship-5155438
This means no more pools of blood under bodies, no more puffs of red mist from someone being shot, and only the single available camera angle – which shows practically nothing – for your liaisons with the ladies of the night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0RHkVF4aTY
You can see some of what we’re talking about to the left (NSFW), in footage captured by a German gamer. It’s also being discussed in countless forums, with this work-in-progress at GameSpot probably the most informative.
It’s unclear at this [[link]] stage whether the update was intentional or, as seems more likely, a PAL-related accident in the wake of Australia’s “liberating” patch. We’ll update when we hear from Microsoft and/or Rockstar.