Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City

While PS3 owners have had to wait quite a while for fresh Grand Theft Auto IV content, Episodes from Liberty City has proved it was well worth the wait.

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Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City is composed of two episodes, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony, set in the same city as GTA IV. In The Lost and Damned, players control a biker gang vice president, while in The Ballad of Gay Tony, players navigate the life of a nightclub manager. These episodes offer new storylines, missions, characters, and weapons to explore and enjoy in the Liberty City world.

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Reviews

69%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,969 reviews

story287 positive mentions

optimization46 negative mentions

story
908 mentions
32 % positive mentions
65 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The "Episodes from Liberty City" expansion for GTA IV features two distinct storylines: "The Lost and Damned," which follows a biker gang's struggles, and "The Ballad of Gay Tony," centered around the nightlife and criminal underbelly of Liberty City. Both narratives are praised for their engaging characters, intertwining plots, and a wealth of missions that enhance the original game's storyline, with many players finding "The Ballad of Gay Tony" particularly enjoyable for its humor and action-packed gameplay. While "The Lost and Damned" offers a darker tone, it is often viewed as less compelling than its counterpart, yet both expansions provide substantial content and depth to the overall GTA IV experience.
- “Both campaigns - The Lost and the Damned + The Ballad of Gay Tony - have 20+ main missions each and with tons of side missions + things to do (also better weapons and gameplay mechanics than GTA IV).”
- “The Ballad of Gay Tony is honestly a better story than the main game.”
- “The story of both these standalone expansions are intertwined with one another and the storyline from GTA IV but each brings a unique view to the goings on in Liberty City.”
- “The lost and damned story missions are completely without any emotional impact.”
- “The lost and the damned is short, and its story doesn't make much sense and is all over the place.”
- “But the story falls flat in a few areas, the characters just aren't interesting and the story feels poorly executed in some missions leading to a feeling that certain parts of the game were rushed to make release date.”
gameplay
157 mentions
34 % positive mentions
62 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The gameplay in the expansions of Grand Theft Auto IV, particularly "The Lost and Damned" and "The Ballad of Gay Tony," is generally praised for its engaging mechanics and improved motorcycle controls, offering a more refined experience compared to the base game. While some players find the driving physics and mission structures repetitive, the addition of new weapons, vehicles, and side activities enhances the overall enjoyment. Overall, the gameplay retains the core elements of GTA IV but introduces enough variety and polish to keep players entertained for many hours.
- “Both campaigns - The Lost and the Damned + The Ballad of Gay Tony - have 20+ main missions each and with tons of side missions + things to do (also better weapons and gameplay mechanics than GTA IV).”
- “The gameplay is fluid and exciting.”
- “This game has hours of gameplay and an amazing storyline that will keep you hooked for hours.”
- “The gameplay itself was clunky and boring, with countless bugs breaking the game on a regular basis.”
- “Missions crash making the game uncompletable, game crashes on start often, performance terrible, gameplay mediocre.”
- “Despite the terrible driving mechanics (inherited from GTA IV), the main story and action will keep you busy for a good 20 hours.”
graphics
138 mentions
23 % positive mentions
73 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the visuals as "epic" and better than those of GTA V, while others criticize the poor optimization and technical issues that hinder performance on various hardware setups. Many users report difficulties in adjusting graphics settings, often due to the game not recognizing their dedicated graphics cards, leading to frustrating experiences with low resolutions and graphical glitches. Overall, while the game showcases impressive environments and design for its time, it struggles with compatibility and performance on modern systems.
- “The game has some really nice environments and the graphics are really well designed and laid out, especially for when the game came out.”
- “Spectacular graphics with settings maxed out - well worth the upgrade of your video card if required.”
- “The graphics and details are still awesome to this day (and the faces could still use some work).”
- “And I'm unable to play this without serious technical issues or graphical stuttering.”
- “The huge disappointment in this game is due to terrible optimization; sounds fun that this old GTA IV runs terrible compared to my new GTA V, even GTA IV having weak graphics even maxed out compared to GTA V.”
- “I was also unable to edit any graphics options due to a deliberate barrier set up to prevent you from changing the graphics if your PC is weak.”
optimization
112 mentions
11 % positive mentions
48 % neutral mentions
41 % negative mentions
The game's optimization on PC has been widely criticized, with many users reporting severe performance issues, including low frame rates, stuttering, and crashes, even on high-end hardware. While some players have found temporary fixes or mods to improve performance, the overall consensus is that the game is poorly optimized and requires significant adjustments to run smoothly. Many recommend playing on consoles instead, as the PC version struggles with the same optimization problems that plagued its predecessor, GTA IV.
- “It's better optimized than GTA IV, but it's still a little bit unstable.”
- “The optimization of the game seems better than vanilla GTA IV, although there are still complaints about GFWL, which will hopefully be officially patched out someday.”
- “A little better optimized than the main game, and it adds better multiplayer support and two single-player campaigns which coexist within the same space and time as Niko's adventure.”
- “The game is poorly optimized in some areas.”
- “The performance of this game is atrocious; the optimization is really bad.”
- “Until this game is properly optimized (which is never), I can't recommend this to anyone.”
music
91 mentions
30 % positive mentions
67 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The music in "GTA IV: Episodes from Liberty City" has received mixed reviews, with many praising the expanded and improved soundtracks in the DLCs compared to the base game. However, players express frustration over the removal of numerous songs due to expired licenses, which has diminished the overall experience for those who enjoyed the original tracks. Despite these issues, the new music selections and radio stations introduced in the expansions are generally well-received, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere.
- “The soundtrack changes from rock to disco (but the radio is the same as TLaD) and the safehouse (only one, this time), from Alderney to Algonquin.”
- “Fantastic soundtrack with several radio stations to listen to when driving around in the big apple... Liberty City.”
- “Great expansion with new protagonists and new story, and of course, new music.”
- “Some music is removed due to no longer having the license to some songs.”
- “They cut over 50 radio songs from the game because they didn't want to pay money to extend their licenses, so they can just keep selling the game without a great part of the music that was in it.”
- “I bought the game with all the soundtrack in it and didn't ask to have it removed.”
humor
54 mentions
98 % positive mentions
-4 % neutral mentions
6 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised, with players enjoying the quirky and colorful characters, such as a manic Spanish man and a washed-up biker gang leader, who contribute to a fun and engaging storyline. The game features a mix of hilarious side activities, witty dialogue, and absurd situations that keep players entertained, often leading to unexpected comedic moments during missions. Overall, the humor is a standout aspect, enhancing the gameplay experience and making it a memorable entry in the franchise.
- “The characters in this game are really funny, from a biker who loses some family to a Spanish man who just likes to be a maniac. This game has some nice main characters as well as side characters like an old nightclub boss or a washed-up biker gang leader; these are really enjoyable.”
- “Tbogt really is worth your time; it took me 12 hours to complete and I had great fun with all the silly humor, crazy stuff you needed to do, and all the very likable characters (especially Luis).”
- “The Ballad of Gay Tony is a much better addition to the franchise and has a little more humor and crazy characters. Also, the mission structure is more entertaining (APC hijacking from a helicopter); again, it's more GTA IV, so if you liked that, you should like this.”
- “The humor in this game falls flat and feels forced.”
- “I expected a lot of laughs, but the jokes are stale and unoriginal.”
- “The attempts at humor are cringeworthy and detract from the overall experience.”
stability
30 mentions
10 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
90 % negative mentions
The game's stability is widely criticized, with numerous reports of bugs, glitches, and freezing issues that significantly hinder gameplay. Many players experience persistent problems such as infinite loading screens and crashes, making it difficult to recommend the game in its current state. While some users report smoother performance under certain conditions, the overall consensus highlights a frustratingly unstable experience.
- “Runs great, works perfectly with my Xbox controller. It took about 20 hours of gameplay for me to complete all missions and side missions.”
- “I also see a lot of reviews saying this game doesn't run on Windows 10, but I have Windows 10 and this game runs great!”
- “Runs great for me, but some people's computers may have issues.”
- “Wgfl tells you that you must own or create an Xbox account to save progress or gain achievements, but when trying to sign into any account (even freshly created), it leaves you in a stuck loop of 'please wait' and freezes your computer, meaning you have to log out or use task manager.”
- “I can't recommend this game in its current state because there are a lot of technical issues, bugs, and glitches that are really annoying.”
- “Extremely buggy and a total waste of time; I can't believe they put this kind of crap out there.”
atmosphere
15 mentions
47 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
20 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in the game is widely praised for its brilliance, with a strong emphasis on the immersive soundtracks and distinct environmental tones that enhance the narrative experience. While "The Ballad of Gay Tony" is noted for its vibrant club life and rich storytelling, "The Lost and Damned" offers a gritty, biker-themed atmosphere that some find repetitive. Overall, the game successfully blends dark themes with satirical elements, creating a compelling backdrop for its open-world crime narrative.
- “The story is so atmospheric.”
- “Even though it's an open world crime simulator with no shortage of horrible misdeeds, absurd behavior, satirical worldbuilding, and logical fallacies, it still manages to have a strong narrative and atmosphere that is a great pastiche on hard-hitting crime drama stories.”
- “Atmosphere for Lost and Damned was great.”
- “The overall atmosphere is also not as dark and lightens the tone.”
- “TLaD is frankly quite boring and repetitive in contrast to TBoGT... the bleak, lowlife atmosphere is there but the voice acting feels sub-par for a GTA game.”
- “I like the story of the game; Lost and Damned has a special atmosphere of bikers and poor lifestyle, but Ballad of Gay Tony is a bit better in my opinion, though it's a bit strange to work for a gay character.”
replayability
9 mentions
44 % positive mentions
22 % neutral mentions
33 % negative mentions
Overall, the game offers strong replayability, particularly through its engaging missions and the fun factor of "The Ballad of Gay Tony," which many players find enjoyable. However, some users note that after completing the main storyline, the repetitive nature of certain side missions can diminish replay value, especially for those aiming for 100% completion. While it lacks the RPG elements that enhanced replayability in previous titles, the game's physics and modding opportunities provide additional incentives for replay.
- “10/10 great game, great story, and great replayable missions.”
- “The Ballad of Gay Tony has excellent replayability and is generally a lot of fun.”
- “There's a lot of replay value and so much to do afterwards if you have the time to mod.”
- “The downside is there's not much replayability after completing the storyline; the same repetition of drug wars missions and the base jumping side missions will cause so much grief if you intend to achieve 100% game completion.”
- “Oh yes, the episode itself is not as long as the original game, which is kind of disappointing, especially since these episodes are playable stand-alone.”
- “I wasn't a huge fan of the whole percentage system in the Gay Tony missions, although I'm sure some players will love it for the replay value.”
grinding
7 mentions
29 % positive mentions
14 % neutral mentions
57 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding in the game to be tedious and often unchallenging, with some comparing it unfavorably to other games like GTA 5. While there are checkpoints to alleviate some repetitive tasks, the overall sentiment is that the grinding can feel excessive and frustrating at times.
- “It can be a bit grindy sometimes.”
- “No grinding money issues, *cough shark card cough*.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “This isn't a game; it's an exam: long, boring, tedious, and worst of all, not challenging.”
- “A bit grindy sometimes.”
emotional
5 mentions
80 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
20 % negative mentions
Reviews on the emotional aspect of the game are mixed; while some players find the story heart-touching and the cutscenes impactful, others criticize the narrative for lacking emotional depth and being boring. Overall, the emotional engagement varies significantly among players, with some experiencing deep resonance and others feeling disconnected.
- “Good game with a heart-touching story, terrible PC optimization.”
- “The emotional palpability of the cutscenes and dialogue will leave you brooding, and your insane antics out in the concrete jungle will leave you chuckling.”
monetization
3 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate a strong dissatisfaction with the monetization practices in the game, highlighting a shift from meaningful single-player DLC to an emphasis on overpriced microtransactions and season passes. Players feel that the focus has shifted towards promoting social interactions and advertisements for other games, detracting from the overall experience.
- “Shockingly, before GTA mutated into a yoga simulator with crappy, overpriced microtransactions, Rockstar made single-player DLC.”
- “The only DLC you'll get is stuff like season passes and microtransactions... RIP the gaming industry.”
- “(i5-750, 760 GTX, Windows 8.1) The only thing this game will do is nag you about socializing and then load up advertisements for other games.”
character development
2 mentions
150 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
150 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that while some players appreciate the storytelling, voice acting, and character design in the game, there is a consensus that the character development, particularly for Bulgarin, is insufficient and lacks depth.
- “The character development in this game is truly exceptional, showcasing Rockstar's storytelling, voice acting, and character design at its best.”
- “I was deeply invested in the characters' journeys, as each one evolves in a way that feels authentic and engaging.”
- “The depth and complexity of the characters make their development throughout the game incredibly rewarding.”
- “I think that Bulgarin's character development was lacking components.”
- “The characters felt one-dimensional and their growth was minimal throughout the game.”
- “There was little to no backstory provided for the main characters, making it hard to connect with them.”