It's been a while since I've played "Grand Theft Auto IV." When I was done being awestruck by the fabulous sites of Liberty City and forced my way through the bland second half of Niko Belic's story, I didn't see a need to go back, and the multiplayer just wasn't my thing. But since its 2008 release, Rockstar Games has been hard at work expanding the "GTA IV" world, and the Xbox 360 exclusive "Episodes from Liberty City" is the fruit of their labor. And you know what? It's good to be back.
Made up of the already months-old "The Lost and Damned" and newly released "The Ballad of Gay Tony" (each of which is available separately on Xbox Live), the standalone disc (you don't need "GTA IV" if you buy the retail package) packs a lot of content for its $40 price tag - two separate, unique stories with plenty of characters and missions to be labeled as individual full games.
"GTA IV" was already a gray kind of place palette-wise, and "The Lost and Damned" makes it even grayer. The story of Johnny Klebitz and The Lost biker gang he runs with is an interesting one, but much like Niko Bellic's story, dies down a bit toward the end. Since the length of "The Lost and Damed" is much shorter than the main storyline (it's roughly eight hours), it's not as noticeable.
"The Ballad of Gay Tony" on the other hand is quite the opposite. It's more of a celebration - even while the s--- hits the fan - as everything glows in the shine of the nightlife of Algonquin's clubs run by the titular Anthony "Gay Tony" Prince. You play Luis Lopez, a former drug-dealer turned bodyguard for Gay Tony, who, much like Johnny, has a sensible head on his shoulders and a "don't mess with me" attitude. You fight to keep control of Tony's empire from creditors, gangsters and Tony himself.
While there's nothing really added to the episodes gameplay-wise (you're still shooting a lot of people, blowing up a lot of things, smuggling a lot of drugs and going from point A to point B doing all of the above), what really makes "Episodes from Liberty City" shine is the different perspectives on a city that "GTA IV" players spent countless of hours already in. And it's not even overdone. It's beautiful the way that Rockstar was able to create these subtle interactions in which you see a familiar face and think, "I know you so well, yet here you're a stranger."
If you've been watching the trailers in anticipation for "The Ballad of Gay Tony," know that it isn't as over-the-top as it may seem. Yes, there are moments of sheer destruction with fireworks of explosions (and the tank is back), but the series has come a long way from its cartoon-like style mayhem from last generation. Liberty City breathes. It's a place that feels all too familiar (especially to those who know New York well) and it's definitely the direction the team at Rockstar seems to want to continue in.
New to the GTA series with "Gay Tony" is a Mission Passed screen that comes up after every dirty deed is completed. The screen details various mission criteria (like player damage, vehicle damage, time, the number of headshots registered, etc.) that will vary mission to mission. It also gives you a percent score reflecting of the completed criteria. Once the game is completed, you can go back and retry missions to raise said score giving gamers yet another reason to dive back in.
"The Ballad of Gay Tony" closes out the Liberty City trilogy that "GTA IV" began almost two years ago. The series is a testament to how narrative still matters to some developers as these games pack stories better than most Hollywood sludge. I'll miss you Liberty City, but I'm dying to see where Rockstar is ready to take gamers next.
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