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Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
There are a million stories in Liberty
City. This one changes everything. Once a trusted wise guy in the Leone
crime family, Toni Cipriani was forced into hiding after killing a made
man. Now he's back and it's time for things to be put right.
The streets of Liberty City are in turmoil. Warring Mafiosi vie for
control as the town begins to self-destruct under waves of political
corruption, organized crime, drug trafficking and union strikes. No one
can be trusted as Toni tries to clean up the mess of the city's chaotic
underworld. Deranged hit men, morally depraved tycoons, cynical
politicians and his own mother stand in his way as Toni tires to bring
the city under Leone control.
Fun Fact #1: The
majority of PSP games are ports from the PlayStation 2
Fun Fact #2: Grand Theft Auto: Liberty Stories was a PSP
exclusive
Fun Fact #3: Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories is a PSP port
on the PS2
With these little
fun facts out of the way, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories was a
thoroughly entertaining game on the PSP that unfortunately pushed the
console to its potential with its PlayStation 2 style graphics. Needless
to say, it is definitely a must have game for the PSP but how does this
port compare to its older brother? Read on...
The storyline of
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories takes place in the Grand Theft
Auto III universe, within the walls of Liberty City and once again
players have
access to all the islands within this city. The gamer takes the role of
Tony Cipriani, an upcoming Mafioso from the Leone family whose destiny
became complete in Grand Theft Auto III. As this game is set several
years before Tony's capture, you start from a lowly level street thug
until you eventually become a feared and deadly mobster that made Grand
Theft Auto III so great.
Fun Fact #4: If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
Rockstar have made
the Grand Theft Auto series a truly unique experience that gave the
player just about unlimited freedom and once again, the gameplay of this
current incarnation is similar to previous incarnations. The universe of
Grand Theft Auto is massive and with previous versions, you can interact
with just about anything and anyone in the gaming world. Whether you're
completing the prescribed missions or just racing around and having fun,
this game has it all.
Features:
-
Massive non-linear
storyline penned by an award-winning writing team
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Professional
character voice acting and production
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All-new soundtrack
with the in-game radio stations that Grand Theft Auto made famous
Missions are allocated
to players by meeting various people in the gaming world and when you
interact with these dark and seedy underworld characters, their name
becomes highlighted on your map so you can either accept their missions
or move onto the next character. The beauty of selective missions
is that it makes the game non-linear which not only increases the
gameplay value of the title but keeps things unique and interesting.
Rockstar have once
again gone outside the square as the missions are extremely
entertaining, scary and down right freaky. Whether it's being hired to
hit off celebrities because of a crazed major or
delivering contraband to shady characters, the world of Grand Theft Auto
is truly a fun place to be.
Unfortunately Liberty City Stories has only
three save houses, unlike the almost infinite save houses in San Andreas
which does become a little annoying, especially on those difficult
missions. Fortunately there are a plethora of vehicles that will assist
you to reach your intended destination, whether it's an ambulance, truck
or boat, there is always something to get somewhere in Liberty City
Stories.
The gameplay of Liberty
City Stories is extremely reminiscent of the PSP version but fortunately
nothing beats the DualShock controller which allows the gamer to use the
analog stick to control not only the targeting system but also the
camera. Another aspect of Liberty City Stories that is absent from the
PlayStation 2 version is the multiplayer modes that are unfortunately
missing from this current incarnation.
Graphically, the title
is a little dated when compares to the other Grand Theft Auto games on
the PlayStation 2 as it's almost as if you have plugged your PSP into
your high definition Plasma television that is a no-no. Although the
frame-rate and draw distance have been increased in the PlayStation 2
version, the characters still look a little like LEGO and it would of
probably been an impressive game around 3 or 4 years ago.
What truly stands out in
this version of Grand Theft Auto is the exceptional audio quality of
this game which features one of the best sound tracks I have heard in a
long time that not only include licensed tracks but also various radio
stations that once again feature extraordinary shock jocks, DJ's and
announcers. The game also contains all the sounds of the Liberty City
Stories from car crashes, police sirens and the realistic noises of the
public.
In conclusion,
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty Stories is an entertaining title in the
current drizzle in the gaming world but unfortunately it does not hold
up too well tot he current games on the market. However, if you're
looking for your GTA fix then you really should check this game out and
best of all, the title isn't a full priced PS2 game and some places
online have it for $39.95AUD |
