Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (PlayStation Portable, 2005)

The GTA series of games redefined the way we play video games. The series has been surrounded by controversy because of it's very mature game play. Thousands of people have protested because the game is so violent, but us gamers just can't get enough of this series! The GTA series now makes it's way to the PSP so we can be as violent as we want while we are one the go!

LIBERTY CITY, WHAT A LOVELY PLACE

Ever since the PSP came out, I have cross referenced every single game that also has a cousin on a larger system (PS2, XBOX) and all of those games have been modified, trimmed, and remade in so many ways to make it a different experience from its console cousins, however that is not the case with GTA: Liberty City Stories. I started playing GTA from the very first one. GTA3 was my favorite, so you can imagine my delight when I discovered that this version of GTA takes place in Liberty City, before the events of GTA3 take place.

In this version of GTA you play Tony Cipriani. Toni Cipriani is back in Liberty City after laying low for awhile and he is working hard. He doesn't even take a break after laying low for a few years as he gets right back to working his way up the ladder of Leone family. The Game is set in 1998, before the Callahan bridge was built and before the underground system was finished, apart from that everything else about Liberty City is the same as it was in GTA3 on the PS2.

There are some differences in this game, the main differences are of course the missions within the game. All of the missions are action packed and will keep you coming back for more and more. The difficulty level of some of the missions is high and on others quite low, so there is a nice mix there. There are hundreds of side missions within Liberty City for you to complete, so if you want to take a break from the main story line you can! As you expected there are also the hidden packages for you to find that are scattered around the city! The more packages you find, more items will be unlocked for you to use, like new weapons or new threads

The developers though have taken the best from all of the other GTA games and have placed them into this version for the PSP. There are vehicles from all of the GTA games, including the bikes from Vice City, other characters such as pedestrians from all of the other games have been imported into this version as well.

The one thing that really makes the GTA series stand out above many others are the Radio stations that you can listen to while you are playing, for me this is what really makes this game. What with all he pedestrians going about their lives, night time and daytime, and various weather You actually feel like you are in a living, breathing city. DJ's will talk about current events that are happening in the city, you will hear them talk about all the death and destruction you are causing within the city, they will talk about the weather and so on and so forth! The music is just outstanding as well and adds so much atmosphere to the game, it is quite incredible!

This game will last forever! I have already put 6 hours into this and have only completed 16% of the game! I haven't even started looking for the hidden packages yet, nor have i really tried any of the many side missions. The replay value is very high, you will just keep on playing! It is so much fun just to turn on the game and go on a killing spree or just go for a drive around he vast area that is Liberty City!

The Good
- Crams all of Liberty City onto a UMD
- Load times are quite manageable
- Good sense of humor from the radio stations
- Captures a lot of the cool stuff from the Grand Theft Auto series

The Bad
- Unstable frame rate
- Dull mission design
- Storyline never really goes anywhere
- Occasionally feels more like a GTA III expansion pack than an entirely new game

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories was, and still is, the most impressive game on the PSP. You could argue that other PSP games are more fun, but in terms of size, scale, and pure gameplay horsepower, LCS is unparalleled on handheld systems as far as what it brings to the table: more than 20 hours of ripe GTA goodness. Mere months after LCS hit the PSP, rumors began to fly of its release on the PS2, and sure enough, Rockstar soon confirmed that LCS would in fact land on the PS2 in the near future. After a bit of delay and a no-show at E3, LCS has arrived where the rest of the GTA installments began: on the PlayStation 2. If you've played the PSP version, then you know that LCS is another commendable extension of the GTA franchise. It has a better story and more interesting plot lines than GTA 3 and Vice City, though San Andreas outdoes it in terms of character development -- well, with the main characters at least. LCS follows Leone mafia member Toni Cipriani through his many adventures in the three islands of the city: Portland, Staunton Island, and Shoreside Vale. You'll meet familiar characters such as Salvatore Leone (Toni's boss), Donald Love, and 8-Ball, as well incur several run-ins with the ol' Triads and Yakuza. And, as expected, there are lots of new characters to meet along the way; women, the mayor, and even Toni's mom (we soon find out Toni is an interesting breed of mama's boy). In general, the story is good. It takes surprising turns, and unlike GTA 3, the transitions between the three islands are very fluid. For example, a chase and jump over the Callahan Bridge leads Toni into Staunton Island. Very fun. Remember back to GTA 3 and how long it took for the missions to get challenging. This is not the case with LCS, as by the third mission or so, you'll be in some serious sh*t. But, where the missions in GTA 3 got ridiculously tough as the game progressed, LCS doesn't have the same flow of difficulty. In general, most missions are passable on the first or second try, and if you've got body armor and some nice strappage, you'll have even less trouble. That's not to say LCS missions aren't fun, because they are. But don't expect LCS to be more difficult than San Andreas, because it's not even in the same league. Also, missions are a little less quirky than previous GTA games. GTA 3 and Vice City had lots of RC car/plane/heli missions, but there are much fewer in LCS; the majority are based on enormous explosions. Admittedly, there is a nice supply of sniper and rocket-play, which one can never argue too much about. Possibly the biggest improvement to Liberty City are the motorcycles. Yes, they are all there -- the PCJ-600, the Sanchez, the Freeway, and even the Faggio scooter. Sadly, the insane speed and maneuverability of the bikes meant I rarely wanted to drive anything but a crotch rocket, unless it was a Banshee (what can I say, I'm a classy guy). If your last GTA experience was with San Andreas, then the on-foot controls for LCS will feel like a few steps down.

- From GAMEPRO.COM

To call Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories the most highly anticipated PSP game yet is a complete understatement. Based in the same city as Grand Theft Auto III, Liberty City stories provides a sense of nostalgia for those of us who played GTA III to death, while keeping things fresh with innovative new challenges, vehicles, and characters.

Publisher: Rockstar Games
Developer: Rockstar Leeds / Rockstar North
Release Date: October, 2005
ESRB Rating: M for Mature 17+
Genre: Action
Price: $49.99

When you first play GTA:LCS, it makes you install Update 2.00 on your PSP (if you don't already have it)and it makes you use an AC adapter to install it. After installed, you are ready to play. Exploring the city I found the following things: 1)GTA:San Andreas-like graphics, good assortment of cars, good assortment of pedestrians, exactly like GTA:III except GTA:Vice City physics and GTA: San Andreas revisions (health meter, color-changing target, yellow circle to enter buildings, ect.) Upon completing the first mission, you are now allowed to do Taxi driver, Police missions, Ambulance missions, and Fire Truck missions. As you play the game, new mini-games arise such as "Car Salesman" where you take people on a test drive in the type of car that they want.Police and enemy gangs are now harder to kill and are as skilled as you to add to the realism. However, there are still some negative points in the game. These include: bad radio stations. Music from who knows who and a few "why did they put this in the game?" stations such as an opera station and some Arabic music. You can't swim, so you hit water, you die. You can't jump up walls and fences, you simply fall backward when you try. You can't pull people out of cars without getting in yourself (in GTA:SA it was triangle, then quickly press triangle again) There are less places to go inside ( resturants, gyms, ect.). There are 8 multiplayer games. These include: Deathmatch, Defend the base, Capture the flag, Turn-based Tank survival, Turn-based survival, Checkpoint racing, and Car collection. All of these are GTA style of course with cars as bases and flags. So, what do I think of the game? It's pretty good. Love it bt I just don't like the fact that you can't swim, climb, and the radio stations are horrible. Overall, you should get the game and will blow every other handheld game away! Extremely Recommended!!!

Liberty City Stories is an excellent title for the PSP, and I would highly recommend anyone that enjoys the series to pick it up. It continues to use the same technology from GTA III (as did Vice City and San Andreas, and more recently, Vice City Stories), so don't expect to be blown away graphically, but when put in the context of the fact that this is a handheld title, it is pretty astonishing -- this is essentially a fully-fledged GTA title, right on your PSP. It has many of the side missions, humor, radio stations and characters you would expect to get when playing a GTA game, and it flat-out delivers.

However, if you've become tired of the GTA formula, there's no need to pick it up. It's the same mechanics, running on the same engine -- it's simple an iteration of the GTA III series of Vice City, San Andreas, etc.

But, even so, while it may not be groundbreaking it most certainly warrants a purchase if you own a PSP or PS2.