Since Phil Spencer got up on stage back at E3 2015 with the announcement of backwards compatibility, I’ve often found myself looking up at my shelf of mostly unfinished Xbox 360 games, wondering just when the ones I wanted to come to Xbox One would actually arrive. Sure, there’s been tons of games added since the introduction of backwards compatibility, and with over 300 titles now available, you can only applaud the effort put in by the team over at Xbox, especially as some of those titles now include some of the best games of last generation, but there’s still a big portion of our favourite titles that are yet to arrive.
As of now, however, some of those cries for another top title were answered with the arrival of Grand Theft Auto IV and its accompanying DLC, Episodes from Liberty City. But whilst it’s nice to see another top title make its way to Xbox One via backwards compatibility, is it really worth returning to Liberty City for another jaunt in the criminal underworld? – Well of course!
Grand Theft Auto IV may have been around for some time now but that doesn’t mean it’s any worse for it. Even with the release of GTA V that out-shone its predecessor in several aspects such as map size, game sales and the newly introduced GTA Online, there have been many shouting for the return of Niko Bellic and his crazy Russian cousin, Roman. But with such an expansive sequel already available what could fans possibly want with the return of a seemingly lesser prequel?
GTA IV may not be up to scratch any more when it comes to the graphical standards of gaming today, but let’s be honest, near enough every man in the world and his dog played it. And for all the guys and gals out there who did, you’d be hard pushed to find something to complain about. From the solid story, to the lovable characters and the mini-games to the driving – even Roman’s usual nonsense – everything in GTA IV was pretty much perfect. Had it not been for the introduction of GTA Online later in the sequel, we would have told you the multiplayer was near on perfect as well.
But that’s not the only reason players are looking to get down and dirty in the streets of Liberty City. Those that fell in love with the game enough to purchase the rather expensive (for the time) DLC content – so pretty much everyone – will tell you that The Ballad of Gay Tony and The Lost and Damned were two of the best pieces of add-on content to be seen in a game to date. With both introducing a new story and fresh protagonist to the game, GTA IV felt like multiple games rolled into one. With no sign of fresh single player content on the horizon for GTA V, you can’t blame players for wanting to go back to one of the most well-loved locations of the entire series with one of the best titles in existence.
So is GTA IV worth a return? We’d say so, and if any appreciation at the arrival of GTA IV on the internet is anything to go by, it seems the rest of you are too. So head on over to Liberty City and give Roman that game of bowling he’s always so desperate for will ya’.
