Grand Theft IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony

The final expansion pack for GTA IV hit the shelves of the local EB Games and Xbox Live Marketplace last Thursday and with Modern Warfare being a week away downloaded it to switch gears from my constant firefighting in ODST. Besides, that commercial had some of the best dance music I just had to get it. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, click here)


TBOGT starts off at the famous bank robbing scene from the original GTA IV. (do you know what I'm talking about? *sigh* click here) The guy in the blue in white jacket standing in line, Luis Lopez, (You) is the bouncer/business partner of the top nightclubs owner Tony Prince (Gay Tony) in Liberty City. Oh, and yes Gay Tony is gay. Anything beyond telling you this would be spoilers and gets soo fucked up that I would not be able to tell you it properly anyways.

This being and expansion pack, the graphic engine hasn't been updated, neither has the gameplay mechanics, in the classic "if it aint broke, don't fix it" mentality. the cars still handle unrealistically, and and cop cars do nothing if you plow into a traffic and cause a pileup, just as long as you don't hit the police car. These are the things that I love about GTA. However there is one thing that was broken and has never been fixed. I am talking about the minimap functionality fucking sucks the second you go inside a building. It's far too easy to get lost and it's almost impossible to get where you need to go. Aside from that, everything is good. New weapons like an auto shotgun equipped with explosive shells, sticky C4 bombs, and a heavy machine gun are a welcome addition for causing havoc and the new vehicles are great additions too. The Buzzard, a compact and fast attack helicopter outfitted with mini-guns and rockets became my vehicle of choice for any situation. Well, it was until I found the APC. Before in GTA IV, the only way to cause massive collision damage was to grab a Transport truck and hit the freeway. with this baby, nothing could stand in my way. At top speed, I was smashing 18 wheelers like they were a motorcycle. And with the flak cannon on top, whatever I didn't hit got blown up.

This is how almost every mission ended..... seriously

TBOGT is an intense and really fun game, the missions range from shooting cables of a sky-crane holding a vehicle that you want to steal, to pushing someone out of a chopper, then skydiving down after them Point Break style. OH! skydiving in this game is great! It's quite satisfying to skydive hundreds of feet and hit someone on walking down the street. Also, there are so many people getting knocked off buildings or thrown out of buildings its ridiculous. The dancing parts incorporate the thumb-sticks, triggers as well as buttons for an interesting mini-game that ends with some hard fucking with the dance partner in the bathroom. With all these additions, TBOGT reminds me a lot of Rockstar's best game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. GTA has always done a good job their stories, and this is no exception. Superb voice acting and believable characters in an unbelievable situation makes for a good game story. Luis relationship with his mother, The diamond deal fiasco, the Ray Bulgarin storyline are all great. But there is a part where after a few missions of helping your childhood friends, you end up with a "Drug Wars" series of missions that get repetitive and generally sucked.

All in all, GTA IV: TBOGT is 10 hours of all the things I loved about the Grand Theft Auto games, and a little I didn't. It is $20 well spent, a great value for your cash, and if you've gotten bored of open-world games, this should win your heart back.


+ crazy ridiculous missions
+ voice acting and story are great
+ new vehicles and weapons kick ass
+ skydiving!

- navigating inside buildings is a bitch
- "Drug Wars" is repetitive as shit

MY RATING: 8.5/10