When Xbox exec Peter Moore originally announced at E3 2006 that Grand Theft Auto IV would be coming to the Xbox 360 as well as the PlayStation 3, it was a major coup for Microsoft in the ongoing console battle. And while the game will no doubt be snatched up in droves by consumers this fall, infamous developer Rockstar is already admitting that putting it on the Microsoft platform as well has caused some challenges.

Speaking to the Official PlayStation Magazine in the U.K., as reported by Computer and Video Games, Rockstar's creative vice president Dan Houser acknowledged that the Xbox 360's lack of a hard drive in every unit has made things more difficult than they should be.

OPM asked, "On PS3 you've got a guarantee that every machine is going to have a hard-drive and, with Blu-ray, you've got plenty of storage, whereas on Xbox 360 there's no guarantee of a hard-drive and you're working with the DVD format. Does that create limitations?" Houser replied quickly and succinctly, "Yep." He added, "To be honest with you we haven't solved all those riddles yet."

Ever since the Xbox 360 first launched, Microsoft's decision to offer a SKU without an included hard drive was a source of much controversy, with many in the gaming community labeling the core pack the "tard pack." After all, the hard drive not only provides valuable space for game saves, demos, videos and downloads, but it's also an extremely valuable tool for developers that wish to cache data. Without the guarantee that every Xbox 360 owner will have a hard drive, developers have to design for the lowest common denominator. That said, many developers have taken advantage of the hard drive anyway since many more people have purchased the premium SKU over the core version.

Houser's concern wasn't just for the Xbox 360, however. He continued by also pointing out that PlayStation 3 development is no walk in the park. He said speaking in generalities about both the PS3 and 360 that "both have enormous challenges" and that "both have their own particular pleasures and pains."