IT is flying off the shelves in stores across Hampshire and is expected to become the biggest selling computer game ever made.

Hundreds of bleary-eyed Hampshire gamers will be returning to work today after spending hours hooked on the latest smash-hit computer game, Grand Theft Auto IV.

Dozens of shops across the county opened their doors at midnight on Monday to allow eager gamers to be first to get their hands on the notoriously violent crime-based game, and within 24 hours stores were already selling out.

As part of the controversial theme of Grand Theft Auto IV, players complete missions that include stealing cars and committing violent crime sprees.

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Critics have hailed the game as one of the most forwardthinking ever made, allowing players to create their own storylines as they progress through the game set in the fictitious Liberty City.

Produced by Rockstar, who are also responsible for the controversial Manhunt 2 which was previously banned for sale in the UK due to its level of violence, gamers can play GTA IV on the XBox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles.

The game has an 18 certificate and is expected to break the record held by Halo 3 by taking more than £201m in its first week on release and selling more than six million copies.

In Southampton's Gamestation in Above Bar Street there was a queue of people waiting to pick up a copy at midnight.

Assistant manager Sam Fitzgerald said: "From midnight to 1pm we sold 168 copies of the game which included pre-orders and people just coming in off the street to pick it up.

"I bought a copy myself and it is just what you would expect from this game with the next generation of consoles.

"The online function of being able to play with 16 other people at the same time is excellent."

Queues at HMV stretched down Above Bar Street ahead of the store's late opening and manager Jay Smit said they only have stock left for those who have pre-ordered the game.

"It is definitely the biggest games release we have had.

"We had so many pre-ordering the game and queues of customers were heading down to WHSmith," he said.

Hayley Blann from Toys R Us in Southampton, which opened at 8am, said they had sold out by yesterday lunchtime.

"It's very popular. We will be ordering some more in," she added.

The Daily Echo's games expert Ian Crump, right, was in the queue to pick up a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV and gives his first impressions of the game:

STRAIGHT from the start there was no doubt that this is the darkest, seediest and most realistic Grand Theft Auto game to date. Playing as Nico Bellic, from an unnamed Eastern European nation the gamer is instantly drawn in by missions that start off as simple ordinary jobs but quickly spiral into violent, Mafia-style shenanigans.

The game plays like any other GTA but has graphics and little touches that are enough to amaze even the most critical of gamers.

After spending just over ten hours in Liberty City, I am more intrigued by the game now than I was by the suspense and hype that surrounded it pre-launch.

Rockstar have a notoriously genius way of delivering fantastic storylines, developing characters and providing superb all-round entertainment that keeps players gripped at all times.

Don't miss the full review in this Friday's SceneSouth