Liberty City is a miserable place if you play by the rules. Honestly, who actually wants to wait for a taxi in North Holland when there are diamonds to steal and drug wars to win? If you’re playing the second expansion of Grand Theft Auto IV, you already know Luis Lopez isn't exactly the "by the book" type of guy. He’s a veteran, a bouncer, and a fixer for the most flamboyant nightclub owner in the city. But even Luis needs a hand sometimes. That’s where the cheats GTA Ballad of Gay Tony come into play. They aren't just about breaking the game. They’re about making the game actually playable when the physics engine decides to toss your car into the ocean for no reason.
I remember the first time I loaded into The Ballad of Gay Tony (TBoGT) back on the Xbox 360. The neon lights of Maisonette 9 were cool, sure. But the real draw was the "Ooze" factor—that feeling of total chaotic freedom that the base game sort of lacked. While Niko Bellic’s story was a somber immigrant's tale about the death of the American Dream, Luis Lopez’s story is a high-octane fever dream. It’s loud. It’s colorful. It’s violent.
Using cheats in this specific DLC feels more "right" than in almost any other Rockstar title. You’re literally flying a gold-plated helicopter over a city that hates you. Why wouldn't you want to spawn a tank?
The Phone is Your Power
In the HD era of GTA, specifically from 2008 through 2013, the cell phone changed everything. You don't just mash buttons on the D-pad like it’s 2004 anymore. You pull out Luis's phone, navigate to the keypad, and dial specific numbers.
Once you’ve punched in a code once, it’s saved in your "Cheats" menu. It’s a bit of a quality-of-life upgrade that Rockstar honestly perfected here. If you're mid-firefight and your health is blinking red, you don't have time to remember a 10-digit sequence. You just need to flick that thumbstick and hit "Health and Weapons."
But there is a catch. There's always a catch with Rockstar.
If you care about those shiny Achievements or Trophies, you have to be careful. Activating certain cheats will "block" specific rewards for that session. If you care about the "Cleaned the Mean Streets" achievement, maybe don't spawn an APC in the middle of a mission. However, for most of us just looking to see how many police cruisers we can stack in Times Square (Star Junction, whatever), it doesn't matter one bit.
Spawning the Heavy Hitters
Let’s talk about the vehicles. The vehicle cheats GTA Ballad of Gay Tony offers are significantly beefier than the ones in the base game or The Lost and Damned. We’re talking military-grade hardware.
The most iconic one? The Buzzard.
Dial 359-555-0100.
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Suddenly, a small, nimble attack helicopter appears in the middle of traffic. It’s got rockets. It’s got a machine gun. It’s basically the "I win" button for any mission involving a chase. There’s something deeply satisfying about hovering over the Algonquin skyline and raining down fire while Luis makes some snarky comment about his paycheck.
Then there’s the APC (Armored Personnel Carrier). Dial 272-555-0160.
This thing is a beast. It’s amphibious, though I wouldn't recommend trying to win a boat race with it. It’s slow, but it’s essentially a tank that fits in Liberty City's narrow alleys. If you're bored, try spawning one on the bridge and see how long you can hold off the LCPD. It usually ends in a fireball, but it's a glorious ten minutes.
If you’re just trying to get from A to B without the cops noticing you, the Akuma bike (625-555-0100) or the Floater boat (938-555-0100) are fine, I guess. But let’s be real. Nobody uses cheats to ride a bike. You want the explosive stuff.
Survival and the "God Mode" Myth
Look, there is no "True God Mode" in The Ballad of Gay Tony. People search for it all the time, hoping for a code that makes Luis invincible forever. It doesn't exist.
What we have is the "Health, Armor, and Ammo" cheat: 482-555-0100.
This is your lifeline. It refills your health bar, fixes your armor, and replenishes your magazines. If you’re falling from a skyscraper because you botched a parachute jump, you can actually dial this mid-air to survive the impact. It’s a bit of a pro-tip for those "L.C. Freefall" moments.
Speaking of falling, the Parachute cheat is 345-555-0150.
TBoGT introduced base jumping to the GTA IV engine. It was a huge deal back then. If you find yourself on top of the Rotterdam Tower without a pack, don’t panic. Just dial the number. You’ll see the parachute icon pop up instantly.
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Weapons and the "Explosive Sniper" Madness
Luis has access to some gear that would make Niko Bellic weep. The "Advanced Weaponry" set is where the real fun is.
Dial 862-555-0100.
You get the Golden SMG, the Advanced Sniper, and those glorious explosive shotgun slugs. If you haven't used the explosive shotgun in this game, have you even played it? It turns every car into a tinfoil ball with one shot. It’s ridiculous. It’s overpowered. It’s exactly what a cheat should be.
The sniper rifle is equally insane. It can take down a police chopper with a single well-placed shot to the tail rotor. When you combine this with the "Lower Wanted Level" cheat (267-555-0150), you become an untouchable ghost in the city. You cause absolute carnage, wait for the five-star rating, then dial the cops away like you’re ordering a pizza.
Why Some Cheats "Break" the Game
I’ve seen a lot of forum posts from players complaining that their save file got corrupted or they can’t finish the game 100%. Usually, it’s because they saved the game after using a cheat that blocks a mission-specific achievement.
If you’re a perfectionist, the best way to use cheats GTA Ballad of Gay Tony is to have a "Chaos Save."
Keep one save file where you play everything legit. Then, keep a second one—I call it the "End of the World" file—where you have every cheat activated and $99,999,999 in the bank. This keeps your main progression safe while letting you vent some steam after a particularly annoying mission (looking at you, "Sexy Time").
The Subtle Ones: Weather and Stars
Sometimes you don't want a tank. Sometimes you just want to see Liberty City under a different light.
- Change Weather: 468-555-0100
- Raise Wanted Level: 267-555-0100
The weather cheat cycles through various states: clear, cloudy, rainy, and foggy. The rainy weather in TBoGT actually looks pretty great even by today's standards, with the neon reflecting off the wet pavement in Star Junction.
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The "Raise Wanted Level" cheat is purely for masochists. If three stars isn't enough for you, keep dialing until the Annihilators show up. It’s a great way to test your combat skills without having to actually go out and commit crimes to get the police's attention.
Understanding the "Session" Lock
One thing a lot of people miss is how the "block" works. If you use a cheat that blocks "One Man Army," it’s only blocked for that specific play session. If you turn off the console or exit to the main menu and reload, the block is gone.
The game warns you in the top-left corner of the screen when a cheat is activated. Pay attention to that. If it says "Achievements Disabled," it means you’ve crossed the line. If you’re just playing for the story and the vibes, ignore it.
A Note on PC vs. Console
If you're playing the Complete Edition on Steam or Rockstar Launcher in 2026, the codes are the same. You still use the in-game phone. Some people try to use trainers or mods, but honestly, the built-in phone system is so integrated into the game's UI that it feels more immersive to just "call" in a favor.
The physics on PC can be a bit wonky if your frame rate is too high—cars might explode more easily or Luis might get stuck in a ragdoll loop. If you're using cheats to spawn vehicles and they keep glitching out, try capping your FPS to 60. The RAGE engine was never meant to run at 240Hz, and it shows.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Playthrough
If you’re jumping back into Liberty City today, here is the most efficient way to handle your business. Start by playing the first few missions legit to get a feel for Luis's movement and the specific gunplay of TBoGT. Once you hit the mission "Bang Bang," that's usually when the difficulty spikes.
- Manual Save Often: Before you start a "cheat session," create a fresh save slot. This is your insurance policy.
- The "Essential" Menu: Dial the Health/Armor and Advanced Weapons codes immediately. They will stay in your phone's memory.
- The Buzzard Strategy: For missions that require long-distance travel, spawn the Buzzard. It saves you ten minutes of driving and lets you see the map from a much better perspective.
- Watch the Achievements: If you see the "Achievement Blocked" notification, don't panic. Just don't save over your primary file.
- Experiment with Explosives: Use the advanced weapons cheat to get the sticky bombs. They are the most underrated tool in Luis’s arsenal. You can set traps for police convoys that are way more fun than just shooting them.
Luis Lopez’s story is about a guy trying to keep a sinking ship afloat. Using cheats doesn't ruin that story; it just gives the guy a better bucket to bail out the water. Whether you're spawning a tank to settle a score with the Mori Kibbutz or just refilling your health during a frantic shootout in a club, these tools are there to enhance the spectacle. Go ahead and dial the numbers. Gay Tony would probably approve of the flair anyway.
Key Cheat Reference Table (Prose Format)
For the health and armor fix, you'll want to dial 482-555-0100. If you're looking for the heavy weaponry that includes the advanced sniper and explosive shotgun, use 862-555-0100. To get the Buzzard attack helicopter, the number is 359-555-0100, and for the APC tank, it is 272-555-0160. If you ever find yourself falling without a parachute, dial 345-555-0150 quickly. To clear your wanted level when the heat gets too high, dial 267-555-0150. Finally, to change the vibe of the city with the weather, use 468-555-0100.