nikoPlaying Grand Theft Auto IV on PC has proved to be a more difficult task than anybody would’ve expected and even though Rockstar did their best to fix the problems and offer the regular PC owner a chance to play the game, it wasn’t really possible. Today, if you still own your copy of GTA IV, it might be your lucky day: Rockstar have released a new patch for the PC version of the game.

The patch, taking Grand Theft Auto to version 1.0.3 plays with the game’s graphics even more and fixes some other things on the way. Here is the full change list:

GRAPHICS:
– Interior Lights for ATI 1900 series cards:
o All light sources appear for users with 1900 series ATI cards. (ie. Pool Mini Game)
o ALT-TAB fixed
– Graphics Settings:
o Added menu option ” OFF ” for Reflection quality
o Added menu option ” OFF ” for Shadow quality

PERFORMANCE:
– Physics optimizations to improve situations with heavy physics calculations (ie. 32 player races)
– Graphical Performance Optimizations

MULTIPLAYER:
– NAT Type detection
– Voice chat is received even if your microphone is turned off

CONTROLS:
– Keyboard / Mouse
o Remapping restrictions removed
o Allow Enter, Backspace, and Arrow keys to be remapped by user
o Allow multiple mouse buttons to be mapped
– Enable/Disable DirectInput in Menu
– Use 2 direct input devices simultaneously (ie. Wheel and Gamepad)
– Added more Direct Input / XInput device support

SECURITY:
– Detect modified files and prevent users from entering multiplayer if found
o Game will prompt with a message after blocking user with modified data files from entering multiplayer
o Should prevent multiplayer access from cell phone and GFWL join in progress

VIDEO EDITOR:
– Scroll Bar improved response
– Sped up load times for users with many clips

TITLE UPDATE 2 FIXES:
– Return of Hot Dog Stands and other props
– Scrolling signboards
– ALT-TAB pauses game during cutscenes

GENERAL ADDITIONS / FIXES:
– Mismatched MODO/Perseus Clothing
– 360 Controller Texture

The patch should be downloaded automatically through Windows Live when you log in, or you can grab it via the official website.