Is life getting boring? Don't worry, the next GTA IV expansion has arrived!
So you thought Grand Theft Auto IV was great and you cried when it ended. Your answer was to finish every single little challenge but that also ended. So you pretended none of it ever happened and you frustratingly waited for the first add-on, The Lost and Damned. You played it, and you loved it, but you wondered where the lovable character was. Niko was only an afterthought in the add-on and your new character made you cringe more than he inspired you.
Enter The Ballad of Gay Tony. You're back, you're a new character, and you'll love every moment of it. Your name is Luis and you're a young Mexican trying to make a name for himself, and make money, in New York. You work for Gay Tony which is a lovably gay man that you'll have fun interacting with. Luis, I mean you, is a pretty nice guy, considering the situation. Because of this you'll have no problem loving to play as your character. In fact there are a few racist moments against Luis and his Mexican heritage and you'll actually feel rage towards the people making the remarks, even if you're not Mexican in real life. That's how much you care about Luis. (Disclaimer: We all feel uncomfortable and angry around racism that is not even directed at us, of course. But we don't necessarily feel rage. My example above was to show you that you'll REALLY care about your character.)
Before getting into how fun the game play is, let's get an important point out there: This is no different than a new, full priced, full game. It is long enough to be a full game in itself, has enough new content inside, and deserves its own spot on the store shelf. It's also completely enjoyable with a full story, like a full game. Yet we only pay about $20 in Microsoft Points. That is quite a plus, especially in today's world where expansions like Halo 3: ODST are very small and limited yet charge full price. Hopefully other companies can learn from Rockstar in not being completely greedy.
The game play in the Ballad of Gay Tony is very "bright" and very fun. What I mean is its not nervous like the original GTA IV was. You were so lonely as Niko and unsure what to expect. It's not dark, grainy, and depressing like The Lost and Damned, where you were a jerk and the people around you were messes like yourself. The Ballad of Gay Tony is bright, fun, revolves around clubs, money, women, fast cars, and more money, and keeps you smiling throughout. There is a definite vibe and ambience surrounding this new add-on that keeps you in good spirits and having fun.
One new feature is hanging out at your boss's clubs. These are fun and exciting environments and add a lot to Liberty City. You can dance with women which is a challenge in itself and, of course, have a sexual reward if you're good at it. You'll even be able to call the impressed woman later on if need be. Not that our lives our horrible to the point that we have to date women in video games but the thrill is certainly there to discover. (Disclaimer: I'm just saying it's possible, in theory, to make up for a mundane life by playing this expansion and winning over a woman in a club and meeting up with her again and again. Not that I would need to. Not that I'm implying you would need to either. But I certainly wouldn't. At no point did I indicate I suffered from this issue. My example is all hypothetical. *IF* you need this form of entertainment, which I certainly don't and I never said you did, then it's there. See? That's all. No one is admitting anything or pointing fingers. Not that there's anything to admit or point fingers about anyways.)
You'll also find thrills in base jumping which is a new activity where you jump off a perfectly stable building. You do this with a parachute, of course. It certainly isn't a game changer but just another excellent way that RockStar has made Liberty City more and more into a real city. Without spoiling anything: you can also do cage-fighting, play drinking games, experience new weapons including a P-90 machine gun imitation, drive and shoot with an APC/Stryker type vehicle and fly and shoot with a LittleBird/AH-6 type helicopter. Like I said, this expansion is as close to a full game as you can get.
Admittedly I haven't finished the game so I can't comment on length. With side challenges, things to do, wreaking havoc, and the main story weighed in I have always found GTA IV and Lost and Damned to be satisfyingly long. I assume this expansion is also.
Voice acting is the only development issue I have with the Ballad of Gay Tony. Most acting is great and this especially goes for Gay Tony. It is your voice, Luis, that is unfortunately the worst voice. Whoever did the voice-over sounds nervous and as if they're giving a huge effort. It's not at all natural sounding. Was there only one Mexican guy available to do the voice? In fact was he even Mexican? The accent, voice, and everything seems forced and fake. It's unfortunate because as much as you love your character and the story, every time you hear his voice you roll your eyes.
The second issue I have, which I don't hold against the game specifically, is the frame rate is considerably choppier in this expansion than it was in the Lost and Damned as well as the original GTA IV. The engine has always demanded a bit too much from modern consoles and it shows more than ever with this expansion. It won't ruin your experience by any means but if you switch back and forth with other games then you'll definitely notice a choppiness with this expansion.
A strange addition is a new scoring system that shows itself after every mission. It shows your score as well as some goals you could've aimed for. You can replay even a successful mission. Honestly, this addition is a bit awkward because it pops up at the end of missions and brings you out of the GTA mood you're in. We're just not used to seeing scoreboards in the regular day life of Liberty City.
I don't have much to say about multiplayer. There are a few new additions but honestly I've never found the GTA IV multiplayer formula to be fun. This game, and the presentation and controls, does not work very well with multiplayer.
At a 2GB download, and 2GB for the previous Lost and Damned, I strongly suggest you buy the add-on disc in stores that includes both expansions titled "Episodes from Liberty City". This way you'll always have the two expansions and won't have to download or re-download it. If you bought Lost and Damned already then you'll have to decide if you want to essentially buy it again. My opinion is it's a classic so instead of paying $20 for it to download then just pay $40 and get them both on disc; regardless of if you already bought Lost and Damned.
Final Verdict: 10.0 – Sure, the voice acting of Luis makes you cringe but its' not enough to affect your overall satisfaction.
Pros: As big as a real game, new activities, vehicles, weapons, same improved motorcycle physics from Lost and Damned, great characters
Cons: Luis's voice acting and frame rate indicates the game has outgrown its engine as well as the capabilities of consoles