GTA IV with better bikes, good story too (Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost And Damned Edition (Xbox 360))

Member Name: illinoiscx

Product:	Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost And Damned Edition (Xbox 360)
Date:	30/05/09 (35 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap at only around £14-£15

Disadvantages: No new map area or anything like that

This game builds on the foundations laid by Grand Theft Auto IV by introducing a new set of characters, missions and new storyline. Still set in the Liberty City of Grand Theft Auto IV, there is no real addictions in terms of locations to the map, only small tweaks and refinements. All for the better, I may add.

In The Lost And Damned you play a member of the Liberty City biker gang "The Lost" named Johnny Klebitz. You are vice president acting as president in the actual president's absence. The story revolves around biker gang politics, the drugs underworld, and general bad things like that.

The most striking difference between this add-on and the original Grand Theft Auto IV is the improved motorbike handling physics and their more integral role in the game. Your motorbike will become your primary mode of transport, and will often be used in convoy with your fellow gang members (a neat formation feature is also used during these bits).

I found the protagonist Johnny Klebitz to be quite unlikeable but fun to play as all the same. He lacks some of the charisma of Niko Bellic and is perhaps more forgetable.

There are some good missions in this add-on, though none as challenging as the hardest in GTA IV, especially the final mission, which was a massive let down and anticlimax. There are plenty of side missions and other challenges, such as the bike races (with added baseball bat action and good Xbox achievement to go with it), and the gang wars.

At 1600 Microsoft points this represents good value for what is a polished and refined, if slightly brief add-on to the Grand Theft Auto World. Highly recommended.

Summary: A nicely refined slice of GTA action, good value too