The cost of this DLC might be off putting at first but it is only until you switch on The Lost and Damned that you truly understand why this DLC is one of the best out on the market to date.
Now
lets get this straight your not getting any new places to explore or
getting any new revolution from GTA IV but what you do get is a
fantastic story with some very exciting and intriguing characters. You
play as Johnny Klebitz, the Vice President of the Lost Biker Gang. At
the start you must pick up your President of the Lost, Billy Grey and
from then on you fight for the survival of the Lost Gang as the
drunken, chaotic Billy Grey seems to have forgotten how to run things
while he has been on the inside.The story overall is fantastic and will last roughly 10-16 hours granted that you do all the side quests, races, explore and obviously do the main storyline. The voice acting again shines through and some very memorable moments will keep you on your toes. The mission structure is basically the same as GTA IV where you drive to some place, kill some dudes, get a cutscene and then a piece of awesome music while the screen presents you with a Mission Complete logo. However, the game does not feel like a copy and paste from GTA IV's story. The character dynamic has dramatically changed and the way this story actually gives you a sense of place in Liberty City as part of the Lost Gang makes the story overall feel a lot more easier to access than the main Niko story. Speaking of Niko you will encounter some of the moments in GTA IV's story which is pretty cool as you get to see some fights from a different perspective. You will also be seeing some memorable characters from the main story of GTA IV like Liz, Playboy and Roman. The story really does fill in some gaps but overall it just makes you remember some of the fantastic moments, characters, places and just overall the city of Liberty City.
The gameplay has slightly been tweaked. The motorcycles do feel easier to ride and you tend to stay on your bike longer. This is good news as if you haven't caught on that the Lost Gang is a Motorcycle gang which means that you will be riding around with your 'Brothers'. This is also a clever part of the game where if you ride in formation with your gang your health will regenerate, so ride in style and get health. The new weapons are a nice addition but again don't add anything major to the game they include a Auto-shotgun, Sawed off shot-gun, Blast pistol, Pipe bombs and a Grenade launcher plus you have all the weapons from the GTA IV campaign.
There
are also a number of new vehicles and music like Wanted Dead or Alive
and Highway Star which fit in nicely with the whole biker gang feel.
Graphically the game look pretty much the same. However they do stick
on as default a horrible film grain which you can turn off in the
options, thankfully.Multiplayer has not changed that much but six new game modes have been added. One of them is just GTA Race but with Bikes only, also you all get clubs to whack each other. Own the City plays a lot like Turf War where eight player fight to take over areas the only difference is that the areas are swamped with the A.I which you must fight through to control the area. Lone Wolf Biker is a 16 player game where one person is designated the Lone Wolf and everyone else must take him down.Witness Protection is again another change of S.W.A.T Team, where The Lost gang has to take out the N.O.O.S.E who are trying to transport witnesses to a safehouse. Chopper vs Chopper is probably one of the best game modes but unfortunately it's only for two. One person is on a Bike and has to race through the city on their Bike while the other player is in a Helicopter trying to take him out. Club Business is the final game mode and this is just an objective game mode, however if your Biker gang rides in formation you gain money to put towards your total score. It is a nice to see Rockstar putting more into the multiplayer but honestly it has probably gone to waste as the GTA IV multiplayer has never really took off.
The
story is definitely the reason you are going to purchase this DLC and
it is worth it. If you haven't played GTA IV in a while this is a great
piece of DLC which will take you back to Liberty City for a great new
take on the GTA story, plus the addition of some amazing characters
just brings Liberty City to life again. The multiplayer is a good
little addition for your money but it still wont make you go back for
more. We are Brothers for life, Lost forever!