Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

When Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories came out in 2005, many doubted that an open world full of cars, gangs and chaos could fit into a handheld console. Rockstar Leeds (then still as Rockstar Leeds in collaboration with Rockstar North) showed that it could, and that it could be done surprisingly well. The game returns to the Liberty City known from GTA III, but three years earlier, in 1998, and casts you as the mobster Toni Cipriani.

Mechanically it's a classic sandbox in the spirit of the series: you drive, shoot, complete missions for various bosses, steal cars and wander among a trio of islands in between. The PSP retained the overwhelming majority of what made the big installments big. Freedom of movement, radio stations with licensed music and that trademark black humor. The controls were adapted to the console's single analog stick, which took getting used to when shooting, but the overall feeling of the open world remained untouched.

The development context is interesting in itself. Liberty City Stories was the first full-fledged, purely "big" GTA installment created primarily for a handheld, and it became proof that portable platforms could carry even the most ambitious brands. The success was so convincing that the game was later ported to the PlayStation 2 as well, and in modern times it even received mobile versions.

Culturally the title played the role of a bridge. For many players it was the chance to have the GTA world literally in their pocket for the first time, anywhere and anytime. In the mid-2000s that was no matter of course, and to a large extent it defined what was expected of the PSP as a "console for the road."

Thanks to the combination of a proven formula, a return to an iconic city and technical performance on a small screen, Liberty City Stories is among the titles that helped establish the PSP as a platform for big games, not just for lightweight experiences.

Why play: A full-fledged GTA in your pocket with a return to the iconic Liberty City. If you like open worlds and want them on the go too, this is a classic.