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Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

Information
Reviewer: James Collins
Developer: Rockstar Leeds
Publisher: Rockstar Games
Platform: Others
Genre: Action Adventure
UK Release: 04th Nov 2005
Article Date: 06th Nov 2005
Difficulty: Medium
Price: £34.99
Score Breakdown
Experience:
Game Play:
Graphics:
Sound:


Overall Score: 92%
Discuss this review in the Forums
Pros
  • Great Multiplayer
  • Full GTA Experience
    Cons
  • Vehicle Control
    Screenshots

    8 of 8
    		•

    The Grand Theft Auto franchise has always pushed every format the title was released on. The latest, Liberty City stories now has its chance to get its teeth into Sony’s new PSP. Handheld specialists Rockstar Leeds who produced the magnificent PSP version of Midnight Club 3 Dub Edition had the seemingly impossible task of scrunching the whole of Liberty City into a single UMD. Ultimately what has been seen by many as the PSP’s most important game this year is finally here, and with multiplayer support written into the code for the very first time.



    As you would expect the location here is Liberty City again, and anyone who played the original GTAIII will recognise the streets and alleyways almost immediately. The events in the PSP version are taken 5 years before what we saw previously however, so certain structures are still being built, for example the massive bridge which links the three main islands in the game is not just inaccessible at first, but under complete construction.

    It shouldn’t take long to get accustomed to the controls in Liberty City Stories as they remain relatively unchanged from the PS2 version. Stealing vehicles or opening doors is achieved with the triangle button with accelerate tied to the circle button with the brakes handled with the square buttons. Auto targeting is achieved by simply holding down the right shoulder button with the circle button activating the currently selected weapon should you be on foot. The Dpad switches weapons and selects radio stations while finally the flat analogue switch controls direction.

    And even though Liberty City Stories doesn’t feature all the improvements of the latest blockbuster ‘San Andreas’, (Toni can’t swim for example) some of the new gameplay elements have still made the game. Toni can now enter houses, switch clothes and save his progress in his safe houses. It was understandable that the full RPG elements of Andreas weren’t included and if to apologise the incredible multiplayer support more than made up for any tiny shortcomings we may have had with the game.

    What people really want to know though is how it runs on the PSP, and we can say without hesitation it runs every bit as well as we would have hoped. The frame rate runs steady throughout even with large action segments pushing the handheld hard. It might not impress the PC guru with the latest graphic card and processor but it certainly never interferes with the gameplay or causes you to restart missions. The view distance is also impressive with many of the PS2 problems of clipping and popin resolved to large extents.

    The graphics are simply amazing and trump anything seen on the handheld to date. Textures are decent as are buildings, vehicles and other characters. Even though the action is taking place on a relatively small screen compared to a TV or monitor very little seems to have been sacrificed to keep everything smooth. And as we would all hope, the brilliant radio stations have also made a re-appearance with some all time favourite DJ’s from the series returning to host more great radio shows (Lazlow returns for some more tongue in cheek chat for example).

    Voice acting is again superlative with many of the talented voices making a return. Of course with this being an 18 certified game you can expect quite fruitful conversations between characters and headphones should be a consideration if playing this in public places, other than that plot wise this is the GTA we all know and love. The game might not have the celebrity backing that San Andreas had in bucketloads, but the actors used did there best to make that a moot point.

    Not including all the usual story based missions, GTA Liberty City also features all of those extra hidden missions that we have come to expect from the series. Jump into a Taxi and you can activate the ‘Taxi missions’ which has you driving throughout Liberty City picking and dropping people off for cash. Feeling like a hero? Simply hijack a Police Car and drive around apprehending criminals for the bounty. The Fire Engine and Ambulance missions are also present and correct and also involve driving to a location in a set amount of time. Our own favourite was taking pompous customers on test drives as the local car salesman and/or stealing the same vehicles and selling them for profit. There are of course plenty more to discover but ultimately it just goes to prove that when you are in the GTA world there is always much more to do than complete the story missions.

    Aside from the game play elements, and of course how well it runs, the Multiplayer mode has been a hot bed of discussion since the feature was announced. Liberty City Stories features seven multiplayer modes in all, with the host being able to tweak the experience in numerous different ways. Liberty City Survivor, Street Rage, Protection Rackett, Get Stretch, Tanks For The Memories and The Hit List and Wedding List all play slightly differently and all allow for that trade mark free movement around the huge gaming area. The host must have unlocked all the areas to have total control but even the standard Portland area offers a quick multiplayer fix. The upshot is that if you have enough people around you'll find the experience just as engrossing as the single player game.

    Utilising the Ad Hoc connection, setting up a game is a pretty straightforward process for up to a maximum of six players. The obligatory deathmatch mode is aptly named “Liberty City Survivor” with everybody starting in separate locations with the mission of hunting down and killing as many of the opposing players as they can within the confines of a time limit. “Tanks for the memories” has one player controlling a tank with everyone else kitted out with Rocket Launches, the task being obvious. “Street Rage” will satisfy anyone who enjoys racing in GTA with the reaming modes being equally enjoyable. Even more important is the fact that the multiplayer modes were lag free and drop out free during our test time, a testament to how adequately Rockstar Leeds have handled the franchise and of course hopefully a sign of things to come for all formats.

    With the map, vehicles and characters of the original Liberty City, it was a shame to see the vehicle control problems have returned to haunt the franchise. Taking into consideration the new control method the PSP utilises we still found vehicle control a little too responsive and almost as if the roads were made of ice. Some may also find travelling between failed missions a little too time consuming but the returning taxi ride does help alleviate some frustration. Finally the camera occasionally annoyed us during some intense fire-fights but the blame does lie in parts to the PSP only having the single analogue stick.

    If you are the type that just glances at the score and the summery, we have decided to save you some time. PSP game of the year? Without a doubt. The game might not be fault free but very few games are, and what Grand Theft Auto does well is hide shortcomings with some of the greatest gameplay seen in decades.

    Thankfully Liberty City Stories upholds this fine tradition.





    DETAILED GAME INFORMATION

    [Click to enlarge image][Click to enlarge image][Click to enlarge image][Click to enlarge image][Click to enlarge image]
    [Click to visit the official site]


    Version Reviewed: PSP Retail
    Other Versions: No, PSP Exclusive
    Muliplayer: Yes (7 Modes)
    Price: £34.99

    GTA Liberty City Stories Trailer #1 - DOWNLOAD HERE
    GTA Liberty City Stories Trailer #2 - DOWNLOAD HERE
    GTA Liberty City Stories Trailer #3 - DOWNLOAD HERE





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