You may be wondering if the new DLC for Grand Theft Auto 4, The Lost and Damned, is worth your hard-earned $20. Does it contain enough new content? Are there new gameplay mechanics? Is the story line compelling? Read on in this The Lost and Damned review to find out.
The first thing you must know is this game is a Xbox 360 exclusive. If you own a PS3 or PC unfortunately you will not be able to play this new GTA IV downloadable content. You must also already own GTA4 and have the disk in the drive to play the expansion pack. That said, you will find the download for The Lost and Damned in the Xbox Live Marketplace for 1600 Microsoft Points, which is equivalent to $20 if you are in the US; prices will vary in Canada, the UK, and other countries.
If you have been disappointed with previous DLC through Xbox Live, prepare to be pleasantly surprised. The Lost and Damned contains a virtually unheard of amount of content for an expansion pack on the consoles. Not only is there a significant single-player mission, but Lost and Damned includes 20 new vehicles, a half-dozen new weapons, 54 new music tracks, new TV shows and in-game websites, and new side missions. Overall you're looking at an additional 10 hours of new gameplay and that's not include the new multiplayer modes.
Unfortunately for those who were hoping for a new setting, The Lost and Damned takes place in Liberty City at the same time as Niko's story from Grand Theft Auto IV. Not all is lost, however, as Rockstar keeps things interesting by intersecting the two story lines both directly and indirectly. Keep in mind though, the new content and gameplay mechanics are only available in The Lost and Damned and not in GTA IV.
This time around in the single player campaign you play as Johnny Klebitz, Vice president of the biker gang "The Lost". While the leader of the gang, Billy Grey, has been in rehab Johnny assumes the role as leader which naturally leads to conflict after Billy is released .
Those who have not completed the Grand Theft Auto 4 story may want to do this before starting The Lost and Damned as many of the events in GTA4 are seen from Johnny's point of view and help explain the events in some of the original story's missions.
When you first load up Lost and Damned you will notice Liberty City appears grainer. This is due to a grain filter applied to the game by Rockstar, and although it can be turned of the default setting represents Rockstar's intention of making The Lost and Damned a darker, grittier version of the original game as we will see throughout the rest of this review of The Lost and Damned.
Several crucial and oft-requested gameplay tweaks have been made for The Lost and Damned. The missions now sport a checkpoint system, no longer forcing you to drive back to a failed mission. Unfortunately the mission checkpoints are not available in Grand Theft Auto IV, an omission which will surely annoy many gamers. The most notable major tweaking is of the motorcycles. Since The Lost and Damned stars a biker, changes to the bike handling had to be made. No longer do you get thrown from your bike after hitting a curb, or bumping into a car. You are now able to ride through Liberty City on Johnny's unique Hexer, or any of the other new motorcycles without worry of getting unseated. Another great addition is the ability to use baseball bats while riding on the bike which allows you to play out the game a bit like Road Rash.
If the new bikes aren't fun enough for you, there are also plenty of new weapons to play with. There's an automatic 9mm pistol, a sawn-off shotgun, pipe bombs, and a assault shotgun. You might find your favorite weapon being the new, and highly powerful, grenade launcher.
There is great news in this The Lost for Damned review if you are one of the many gamers who found Grand Theft Auto IV's friend system annoying you will be pleased to know that this is no longer a problem. Since Johnny has lived in Liberty City his entire live, he doesn't need to make friends. Sure, you can call your biker buddies to play air hockey or arm wrestle, but you won't find anyone nagging you in The Lost and Damed. Johnny is also able to call up his biker buddies for backup who now have the ability to gain experience which increases their maximum health.
The Lost and Damned also includes a number of new multiplayer modes as well as a few which carry over from GTA IV. The complete list of multiplayer modes are: deathmatch, team deathmatch, races, club business, lone wolf biker, chopper vs chopper, witness protection, own the city, and of course free mode.
Overall The Lost and Damned provides an experience much like that of the original Grand Theft Auto 4, however with 25 gang wars to be won across Liberty City, 50 new seagulls to find, new bike races, some more mini-games, and new bike theft missions you'll find the extra 8-10 hours of gameplay welcome. It's simply important to note that The Lost and Damned is not a new game but a new episode in the GTA 4 story which most will find entirely worth the $20.
Hopefully you found this review of The Lost and Damned helpful. If you haven't purchased the game yet, you may also be interested in where to buy The Lost and Damned.
