

But then the wonky touch controls are just a little harder to control on the tiny screen. Liberty’s overall blocky props and character models (protagonist Toni Cipriani’s apparent fetal alcohol syndrome, for example-herbivore style, Toni’s eyes are planted nearly on the sides of his head) don’t seem quite so bad on a smaller phone screen. Blockish and slightly cumbersome, a lot of the character models seem almost abstract on a tablet or, God forbid, a TV screen. The game’s touch controls and graphics provide only minor drawbacks but drawbacks they are. Like all of Rockstar’s mobile offerings, Liberty is overall a revelation.

Released originally-you guessed it-10 years ago for the Play Station Portable, GTA: Liberty City Stories represents some of the finest game design you’ll find in a mobile title, even if the experience is slightly compromised by production values that are slightly dated even for an Android game. Rockstar’s recent release of GTA: Liberty City Stories for iOS and Android is, if not a cause for celebration, then at least a sure fire way to stave off the ever-present notion of impending doom. We’re here, after all, for far less morbid reasons then our mutual and ever-approaching end. What’s worse over the course of those lengths the people and the world around you change at a maddening pace. Think about it: You actually only get seven, maybe eight such stretches and then… Ten years represents one-seventh of your life.
