Gangstar New Orleans

Gangstar New Orleans is Gameloft’s shot at bringing Grand Theft Auto-style chaos to mobile, and for the most part, it works. Set in a stylized version of New Orleans, the game drops you into a world filled with biker gangs, voodoo priests, and crooked cops, all wrapped in an open-world sandbox where the streets are yours to claim.

You’ll start off with the basics: driving, shooting, and collecting loot. The city’s split into districts, each with its own flair, from the iconic French Quarter to the grimy backwoods bayou. Missions range from turf wars and heists to high-speed races, though after a while, the loop can get a little repetitive. It’s not a game you’ll finish in a weekend, and not just because there’s a lot to do. The grind is real.

Combat feels tighter than it did in Gangstar Vegas, and switching between weapons and abilities is fairly smooth. Driving, on the other hand, still feels floaty, especially when you’re in one of the game’s clunkier vehicles. That said, there’s a huge roster of cars and weapons to unlock, upgrade, and fuse, if you can get past the loot-box-heavy progression system.

Speaking of which, this is where the game hits its biggest bump. Missions start easy, but soon you’ll find that without a rare gun or upgraded ride, certain side missions are locked behind gear walls. And that’s when the game starts nudging you toward in-app purchases. Spirit Jars (yep, loot boxes) are your main ticket to progress, but more often than not, they’ll just give you another copy of what you already own.

Still, there’s fun to be had. Turf Wars add a bit of multiplayer spice, and owning your own mansion, complete with helipads and speedboats, is undeniably cool. Just don’t expect deep storylines or groundbreaking design. Gangstar New Orleans is a serviceable sandbox with solid core gameplay that’s held back by its monetization.

If you’re itching for GTA-style mayhem on mobile and don’t mind a little grind, this one’s worth a spin.