Although the expected news of Grand Theft Auto IV being the first console game in the best-selling series to boast online multiplayer stormed the tubes last month, Rockstar gave the lowdown on two out of the four featured multiplayer sections, Team and Race, only recently. Hit the jump for all the details on the first half of the GTA IV multiplayer.

TEAM

• Team Deathmatch (2-8 teams)

  Players work as a team to rub out other teams for money – and the crew with the most cash at the end of the round wins. Take the other crew down. Remember to loot the cash dropped by deceased players. That’s the way to get ahead.

• Team Mafiya Work (2-8 teams)

  You’re a member of a crew doing contract work for the mafiya — including such plum gigs as escorting wanted men, picking up MacGuffins and stealing cars. Work as a team to complete contracts before the time period ends and get the rewards. You’ll probably want to do your best to scupper the other crew’s work as well. Each contract you complete gives your team cash, and the crew with the most cash at the end of the round wins.

• Team Car Jack City (2-8 teams)

  Cars spawn parked around the map and the teams must steal them and take them to a drop off point. The cash teams get for dropping off stolen vehicles depends on their condition — teams get less cash the more damaged they are. The exception to this are special bonus cars, stuffed with drugs, which give a set amount of cash on delivery no matter how damaged they are. Your crew has to get hold of whatever vehicles the boss wants. Whichever crew makes the most money wins. Simple.

• Cops n’ Crooks (2 teams only)

  A team-based mode in which the Crooks must get their Boss to safety, while the Cops have to take him down. The Boss is marked with a cross hair. This mode has two sub-modes: All for One and One for All.

  In All for One, one team is made up of Crooks and a Boss, and the other team is made up of Cops. The Cops are trying to hunt down and kill the Boss while the Crooks are trying to protect him. The Cops win by killing the Boss and the Crooks win by getting the Boss sefely to the geta way vehicle and escaping.

  One for All is similar but there is no Boss. Here, the Cops win by killing all of the Crooks and the Crooks win by filling up a getaway vehicle with members of their team. Only 4 people can espace in the getaway vehicle. Player cannot respawn in this mode.

  Both of these variations can be won by the Cops if they manage to destroy the getaway vehicle.

• Turf War (2 teams)

  A timed capture-the-base mode. There are a number of bases around the map that you have to take by standing on them for a short period of time. The more players that are on a base, the faster it can be captured. The more bases that your team owns, the faster your team’s cash score increases. If the rival gang is on or near a base, you won’t be able to take control of it — so do what you can to try and… displace them. The team with the most cash at the end of the round wins.

RACE

• Race

  Race to the finish through each checkpoint in order. If you take a wrong turn or mess up in some way, you can respawn your vehicle on the last checkpoint you passed. There is a large section of races for cars, boats, and helicopters — you can choose laps and vehicle class/type. This mode has two sub-modes: Free Race and Cannonball Run.

  Free Race are point-to-point races. First one to reach the end point wins. Cannonball Run are races where you have to traverse several checkpoints any way you can.

• GTA Race

  Similar to the orthodox Race, but with the added element of combat. Race and fight your way through the checkpoints in order and then hit the finish, but this time you can also pick up the weapons spawned en route to help take out your opponents. You can also exit the vehicle during the road races.

The second half of the multiplayer component, which consists of Cooperative and Competitive, is said to be “coming soon,” in other words, sometime between now and April 29. For more screenshots of the multiplayer modes, check out the galleries on the official website.