For me, Grand Theft Auto IV was a mixed bag. It’s weird to hear a game reviewer do anything but gush when the topic of GTA comes up, but I just didn’t see what everyone else did. On one hand, you have the most polished GTA experience ever crafted, complete with compelling characters, refined gameplay, and a believable, living city that thrives with activity. However, the structure of the title—take a poor hoodlum and rise through the crime ranks—had grown tiresome for me, and it took some serious dedication to finish the highly repetitive missions. When I say “repetitive,” I mean possibly the most monotonous videogame experiences I have ever played. Walking into internet cafes and killing everyone still amused me greatly (wow…that makes it sound like I am just a terrible person), but it took some serious effort to see the story through to its end, and by the time I got there, I found it very under whelming due to the many distractions along the way.

So, I beat GTA IV. Then I bought the first expansion, The Lost and the Damned, and to this day have not touched it out of disinterest…so I guess buying a game I didn’t care about was probably not the best purchase I have made. Hindsight is 20/20. I had resigned myself to not picking up the next major installment of the series (let alone the second expansion) until the series decided to infuse some originality into the formula. Fortunately, I am a fickle individual, and changed my mind upon watching the first trailer of The Ballad of Gay Tony. This expansion provides all the originality and creativity that I have been waiting for in the mega-franchise since the third installment, and offers a great conclusion to the GTA IV saga.

First off, it is important to understand that despite the title, this expansion follows the exploits of an individual named Luis Lopez–Gay Tony is merely a nightclub owner who hires Luis for bodyguard work, and in doing so, provides the motivations for the main character to go out and commit mass homicide. Oh, and earn money and stuff. This is Tony’s story, viewed through the eyes of Luis, and as such, Luis lacks much of the characterization that made Niko Bellic so great. There is simply not much there to his character, and while this provides an interesting technique to present the title’s narrative, it is disappointing that I had such little investment in the game’s “protagonist.” Other than some clever one-liners and his complete disinterest when throwing guys off of one hundred story buildings, Luis is pretty transparent and shallow.

However, not all aspects of Luis are bad; the game thankfully ditches the rags to riches storyline in favor of “riches to considerably more riches.” Luis is no poor chump straight off the immigration boat, and this not only switches things up from a storytelling perspective, but also affects the gameplay. From missions involving parachuting to a building from a helicopter to assassinate people who probably don’t deserve it, to grand theft helicopter-ing a chopper parked on the back of a yacht, Gay Tony is a breath of fresh air to the GTA universe. Oh, you also get to drive fully loaded mini-tanks through the streets, and input a cheat that makes your punches and kicks explosive. The civilians in Liberty City just never get a break.

These sequences that change the way the player interacts with the city are where Gay Tony really succeeds. While I wished the helicopter fights were a little more polished (they are still as frustrating to fly as in the original title), the sheer diversity and originality found in Gay Tony provides something that fans have not seen for a while; aspects that, in my opinion, were sorely lacking from IV. From hilarious anime television spoofs to ridiculous nightlife dancing segments, the expansion is a joy to play, and keeps the player immersed through its entirety. Sure, the deadly serious narratives of IV and the first expansion are put on the backburner in light of a more humorous and over the top plotline (you still find out what happened to the lost diamonds—I know, wondering about where they were probably kept you up at night), but it is this very deviation from the tired GTA formula that helps Gay Tony succeed so well. If you are looking for more of the same, hold tight until GTA V (and VI and VII). If you are ready to view the Liberty City you have come to know so well through a fresh, often outrageous perspective, The Ballad of Gay Tony expansion is a must-buy.