TLAD’s opening cinematic quickly sets the tone for the experience to come. As Deep Purple’s “Highway Star” (one of the fifty-four new tracks included in the DLE) builds to its window-rattling climax, Johnny and the rest of his gang ride in formation to greet their leader, Billy Grey, who’s just been released from the Alderney State Correctional Facility (Billy has a weakness for heroin). Each prominent member’s name and position is superimposed over his body during this introductory sequence, effectively initiating the player into The Lost Brotherhood’s hierarchical structure; we discover that Johnny, the club’s vice president, has been acting as its leader during his superior’s incarceration. Billy’s rehab counselor describes him euphemistically as “willful,” and we soon learn that his behavior has become increasingly erratic as a result of his fiery temperament, heavy drug use, and thirst for power.
Billy adopts his customary swagger immediately after shedding his inmate’s uniform and donning a leather biker jacket, which acts as a second skin for him and his underlings. Membership in The Lost means more to its brothers than anything else in their lives, and provides a sense of belonging and purpose which might otherwise be lacking in their positions at the fringe of society. As a result, they’ll do nearly anything to preserve and strengthen the organization.
Shortly after emerging from prison, Billy rekindles a conflict with the “Angels of Death,” a rival motorcycle outfit. Under Johnny’s more restrained oversight, The Lost had enjoyed a period of relative peace, but with Billy in charge, “the good times are over”-a line uttered by an AOD representative shortly before his summary execution at Billy’s hands. Of course, for the player, the good times are only beginning.
TLAD does a remarkable job of conveying the sense of fraternity offered by gang membership. The Lost clubhouse provides for nearly all of your needs; a club computer (even biker gangs have websites, apparently) renders trips to the internet cafĩ unnecessary, TV and card games meet your entertainment needs, and fellow Lost brothers supply you with bikes and weaponry. As you amble through the dilapidated clubhouse hallways, wondering whether your biker comrades would object to the intervention of an internal decorator, fellow loiterers greet you by name, and the sound of the ground-floor stereo filters faintly through the thin walls. Against all odds, this building actually comes to feel like home.
This sensation doesn’t diminish when you step outside. While most of GTA IV’s missions called upon Niko Bellic to act alone, or with the assistance of a single associate, many of TLAD’s require the presence of a large posse. Riding in formation behind Billy grants health bonuses, a powerful incentive to stick with the pack, but although The Lost don’t abide by speed limits, they don’t always drive as fast as a truly breakneck GTA player might prefer. While Johnny’s exercising control over the group, he can summon backup during any mission via his phone, another helpful benefit of belonging to an alliance of anti-establishment maniacs.
Occasionally, I failed missions because of the destruction of a Lost bike or the death of another Lost member, an unwelcome complication, since new recruits appear without fail when older members fall in the line of duty. Successful completion of missions involving other bikers augments their accuracy and damage capacity, though the game doesn’t last long enough to make this a paramount concern. Fortunately, the active role played by your Lost brethren in the regular course of events means that you won’t be fielding frequent calls from over-enthusiastic NPCs making demands on your valuable time (I’m looking at you, Roman).
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