[Review] Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City

By William T. Kannady

Game: Grand Theft Auto Episodes from Liberty City
Studio: Rockstar Games
Platform: XBOX360
Rating: M (Mature)

Grand Theft Auto IV – Episodes from Liberty City takes you back to where it all started, “Liberty City”, but this time with all new characters.

The main character in this edition of GTA is Luis Lopez. Despite the fact that he shows no remorse, and even appears to enjoy killing people for money, Lopez is a multifaceted and extremely likable character. After doing some time in prison for dealing drugs as a teenager, Lopez is clearly someone who wants to better himself, even if he’s not going about it in a way that a parole officer would approve of.

Enough about the character, lets talk about the action, the missions, and the game.

Depending on how well you play it’s going to take you at least 12 hours to get around the big city to complete missions. Different from most of the assignments in previous games, there are more driving and motorcycle missions. You can expect missions to incorporate plenty of helicopter combat and parachute jumps, a handful of cage fights, and even something resembling a game of golf. If you remember Niko and Johnny from the previous GTA title you will find yourself familiar with completing missions, but from a different perspective which I think is kind of cool. Just make sure you are doing an overall good performance because each mission is rated based on the time taken, damage sustained, enemies killed, and other obstacles.

When you’re not doing missions or fighting people, you can enjoy numerous pastimes, drinking games, champagne popping, dances with the females, overall just having a good time after a day of crime. This was a great follow-up for one of the best games of last year. Once you start playing it, a true gamer will not be able to stop until you see the closing credits.

Verdict: BUY