Kentzz reviews | Nostalgic Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories on PS2 | [ENG]

The influence of Grand Theft Auto III on PlayStation 2 on the gaming industry was tremendous to the point that the "sandbox" gameplay influenced many games on several other platforms, including the next generation of consoles. The series itself continued with Vice City and the controversial gaming wonder that is San Andreas, but the most thrilling series of changes came in the form of Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories for Sony PSP. Liberty City Stories not only carried all the stuff we enjoy about the series, but it was also an exciting story true to the crime stories of previous GTA games. For anyone who may have skipped it for the first time or not own Sony's handheld gaming console, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories is a visit to one of our favorite cities.

you may remember that the PS2 version of Liberty City Stories is much the same as the PSP version, except that the portable multiplayer games are removed from this version of the console. And hand-held graphics are the same thing. The mission structure is a lot like console games and storyline, but the lack of the charming touch of the last three games is positive. Moving out of the bus using to leave town to strike a man-made for the Leone family, Toni Cipriani returns to Liberty City and finds himself abused by the family he swore his loyalty to and finally feels rejected by them. To make matters worse, the organized crime families of Sindacco and Forelli are in a mob war in which each side tries to gain control of Liberty. Portland, the Shoreside Vale, and Staunton Island are the three major areas of the city. Toni quickly became involved in the turf war as he set out on missions with various colorful characters.

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Toni starts by serving under Vincenzo Cilli, just one of the many captains working for Don Salvatore, and then you'll meet a bunch of other characters who will give you a host of interesting jobs. You're going to run errands to the local strip club owner in Portland, or you're going to save Maria's returning damsel-in-distress. It's on its own. You can even get in a taxi and launch a cab mission as well as a regular set of side missions like a pizza delivery watchman. The side quests are numerous, and there's plenty to see and do in Liberty City, which is part of why the game was so impressive in its hand-held type.

Like most of the Grand Theft Auto games, the three main parts of the city are not accessible from the beginning. You're going to have to complete a series of missions for the next region to unlock, and that's achieved by completing the key missions of the game. Of course, you're free to interrupt what you're doing to get involved in a variety of offenses, and you can carjack any vehicle you want, including a variety of vehicles and even motorcycles. You can purchase guns at the nearby Ammu-Nation or even sell vehicles at the Portland car dealership.

The missions you're going to take on in this game vary. They range from easy-going missions to assassinations and damaging missions. In one task, you're going to defend one of Don Salvatore's buildings from rival family gangsters to help Don's mistress, Maria, end up as a street race prize. The best thing is that Liberty City Stories is lined with a range of fun missions outnumbering the dullest. The game controls sound a lot better on the PS2 than on the PSP, with the simplest reason that the second analog stick makes it much easier to switch the camera. Unfortunately, the same bad targeting approach in the PSP version can be found in this version as well. Instead of striking a gunman standing next to you, the aiming reticule tends to hit you sometimes. Remote pedestrians, guy. That's exactly what makes such annoying gunfights. Apart from that, the buttons work well enough, whether or not you're moving down the streets. Rolling down the lane, man.

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Although the PS2 version managed to include almost any feature of the portable version, it also managed to replicate the graphics of the PSP version. The game looks fantastic on the PSP widescreen, and it was an incredible accomplishment to reveal all of Liberty City in all its glory. Yet on PS2, not only do the graphics look dated, but the textures look bland and the characters look bulky. It was disappointing that Rockstar was unable to tidy up the graphics enough to make them look more like those in Vice City. Today, all Liberty City is here, and the city still seems like it's breathing with life.

The sound in the game, on the other hand, is one of the best highlights of the game. Again, we are exposed to the same radio format similar to that of GTA III but don't expect any licensed songs. That doesn't mean, however, that the songs played on the radio aren't healthy. You're going to see everything from hip-hop to Indian pop and even boy bands and talk radio. The voice acting is top quality, but the dialog does not have the same humorous repartee found in the console games. Even the sound effects are not as detailed. Despite missing its multiplayer mode and not-so-pleasing graphics, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories for the PS2 is still a satisfying and enticing title that GTA fans would surely enjoy.