Christmas has come early to the Steam network. First the entire Valve back catalogue - Left4Dead and Orange Box contents included - is bundled for a crazy bargain price and now there’s an unmissable giveaway for PC gamers pre-ordering Grand Theft Auto IV.

Rockstar’s ace open-world American-Dream-gone-sour ‘em up has been rewriting the record books on next-gen consoles - specifically the Xbox 360 - and is due to debut on PC on December 3rd, rrp £34.99 if you’re buying a boxed copy. But physical ownership of a game is, like, so last century, isn’t it? In any case there’s a very compelling reason for taking the digital download alternative route via Steam - a FREE copy of GTAIV’s eighties-tastic and way cool predecessor, GTA: Vice City.

Here’s how. Pre-order the PC version of GTAIV through Steam for $39.99 (£26.70 or so at today’s rates) and you’ll get GTA: Vice City to download and play immediately - that’s worth $9.99 (£6.67-ish) in it’s own right. So two brilliant must-own games for a touch less than the recommended high street price of one, assuming that the exchange rate doesn’t muck the equation up. Head over to www.steampowered.com from more details. Rolled up pastel-coloured jacket sleeves are mandatory…