Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony (Xbox360)

Gaming — By CRS on December 10, 2009 at 1:11 am | 208 Visitors

GTA: The Ballad of Gay Tony is the second of two Xbox exclusive downloadable content episodes for Rockstar Games’ insanely popular Grand Theft Auto IV. TBOGT takes place in the same universe and same city as the previous two storylines. While the other plotlines seemed to hold back a bit in terms of the level of action, TBOGT is like an adrenaline junkie’s paradise. There is the addition of base jumping, devastating new weapons, and most of all- intense over the top action that the series had previously been known for.

GRAPHICS (8/10)

While the series has never been known for its beautiful graphics, it looks like nothing much has changed. The character models look a bit funny at times, and most of the character movements look clunky and forced. The city, however, looks as beautiful and detailed as ever. The game’s main saving grace (graphically) is how great the city and everything in it look. The city is so detailed that after playing for a while, you will start to recognize how certain neighborhoods look. The graphics do a solid job of bringing the city to life.

STORY (9/10)

One of the greatest parts of any GTA game is definitely the writing. While the plots may not be super complex, the characters and the situations they find themselves in are some of the most unique, violent, and hilarious in any game. The story ties in neatly with the last two episodes, resulting in one grand intersecting plotline between the three games. It neatly wraps up all the previous questions and it happens to be a non-stop thrill ride the whole way.

GAMEPLAY (9/10)

Relatively little has changed since GTA IV in terms of gameplay. Perhaps the biggest addition is the inclusion of base jumping/parachuting. This element has been seen before in past games like GTA: San Andreas, but it just seems more fitting in the big city playground that this game takes place in. Nothing is cooler than parachuting onto a skyscraper, infiltrating and assasinating everyone inside, then making your get away by base jumping onto a moving escape truck.

One major improvement is the addition of checkpoints within missions. Now you don’t have to start all the way from the beginning if you should die. Simply answer the ‘try again’ text on your phone and you will resume the mission from your last checkpoint. This helps keep the game moving along, while also helps prevent it from feeling to repetitive as you would have to repeat sequences over and over otherwise. This is good also since the difficulty is ramped up considerably in this game. You have a bunch of new weapons at your disposal, but make no mistake your enemies also have upgraded firepower. While little has changed in terms of overall gameplay, this is one series that only needed a few tweaks since the system was already rock solid.

SOUND (9/10)

The sound effects are pretty good throughout the game. The gunshots and explosions are nice and loud. perhaps the best part of the sound is the incredible voice acting. The characters and their voices are top notch. Although most of the voice actors are relative unknowns, they do a great job of bringing Liberty City and its inhabitants to life. The radio stations are also top notch. I don’t really care much for driving around in these games, but I kept catching myself taking the long route so I could hear the rest of a song on the radio.

The background noises on the city streets are also excellent. You could be walking down the street and pass two people having a conversation. You can actually hang around and eavesdrop on what they’re saying. You can even hear people yelling at one another from their cars. It’s little details like this that really make the city feel alive.

OVERALL (9/10)

This game is a true return to form for the GTA series. While many people were a bit taken back by the somewhat slower pace of the last two episodes, GTA:TBOGT takes us right back to the adrenaline fueled missions of GTA: San Andreas. There is also a good variety of things to do in each mission so the game never really feels repetitive. Most importantly, the fun factor that made the series so popular seems to be in full effect with this episode. While the game is definitely driven by its plot points, there is a greater focus on action, destruction, and overal anarchythat seemed to be missing from the previous iterations. Most of all, this game is just flat out fun. While I didn’t spend any time doing any side missions and focused strictly on the story missions, I had a blast the entire time and I honestly can’t think of a boring or lackluster mission throughout the main campaign. GTA fans will definitely want to pick this one up. The price is also a steal, as it is only $20 roughly to download. There is also a disc that includes both The Ballad of Gay Tony and The Lost and Damned for around $40. This is a great option for those who do not have the original GTA:IV disc, as you can play both episodes without it.

What is your 2009 Game of the Year?