Departure Time

Departure Time is the final storyline mission in The Ballad of Gay Tony. It takes place after the final storyline in GTA IV.

Description
Luis and Tony set off to Funland in Hove Beach to take out Ray Bulgarin and save the Tony Prince Empire. Once arriving in Funland, Luis tells Tony to hide in Meadows Park and if he doesn't come back for Tony, he didn't make it.

Walkthrough
Luis must clear his path and destroy 3 theme park bins filled with heroin situated in the West areas of Funland. Shoot your way through Ray's guards, sticking to cover, as the theme park is a maze with dozens of ways to be flanked and surrounded. Rifles and explosives are a good way to clear a path. Taking out the nearby vans often destroys the bins and is fairly simple, especially if you have the Explosive Shotgun, which can wreck the vans in a few shots from a considerable distance.

After taking out all three, Luis discovers that Ray isn't there. Take a moment to recuperate health if you need to, from the First Aid Kit near the last van, or with the food vendors on the boardwalk, who can be accessed during the mission, and pick up the body armor. Shoot your way through the east side of Funland, taking down more guards and destroying one last bin at the far end of the area. In a minor cutscene, Timur arrives with backup and tells Luis that he's too late - Bulgarin is about to escape back to Europe in a private jet. Quickly, equip a weapon and kill Timur before he has a chance to get away, then take control of a Bati Custom found nearby.

Luis is now ordered to drive to Dukes Expressway, and along the way Yusuf Amir calls him and asks if he needs any assistance, and consequently Luis will decline the offer. However, upon reaching the Expressway, Yusuf will appear in his gold Buzzard. The player now must follow him - he will destroy any Russians along the way with homing missiles.

After finally reaching the airport you'll see Bulgarin's blue Ghawar preparing to take off. During this time you must catch up to it before it departs. Make sure to lean forward on the bike during straight to get a little extra speed boost. Luis will then shoot a hostile seen inside and will jump onto the jet. With only three more goons left in the plane, this final section is surprisingly simple, just shoot them. Bulgarin will then appear - with a grenade in his hand which he is prepared to use. A cinematic execution will take place, with Ray falling to the ground with the grenade with the safety pin removed. The jet then explodes upon detonation - blasted in half. Miraculously still alive, Luis finds a parachute and dives out of the jet as it nosedives into the sea. The player must then safely parachute down and get to Dukes Globe where Tony will be. Note that this is one of the few moments in Grand Theft Auto where there is omnipotent music, or music not generated by a radio.

Upon arriving, a cutscene will be played that shows a homeless man walking the street and looking for food. Luis bumps into him, spilling a trash can. Luis will help him up and walk away, after which the homeless man finds a stash of diamonds - Bulgarin's diamonds. He then walks away laughing with joy. Later in the credits, he can be seen in a mansion in Westdyke full of women, in which he will be dancing on the diving board.

Tony will meet Luis and make amends, Tony reflecting on how he squandered his ambition to see the world by going to Algonquin, where '...the world came to me.' Luis still remains a little cynical, amused that two such different people have become so close. A little while later, Yusuf gatecrashes their reunion, still set on franchising Tony's clubs around the world. When Tony points out that his clubs are more about the people than the style, Yusuf cheerfully dismisses him, stating whip out your dick and piss on them!.

Rewards

 * Completing this mission also unlocks Yusuf's Golden Buzzard, much like his car, to be collected from the Helipad on the West River in Algonquin - and as a result replaces the Swift. Also the player can now call Henrique for an APC, call Armando for a Gold SMG and finally the ability to replay all the storyline missions is now available from the phone.

Deaths

 * Timur - Killed by Luis for threatening the lives of Tony and himself.
 * Ray Bulgarin - Killed by Luis for threatening and attempting to murder him and Tony.

Trivia

 * It should be noted that Tony says that he is going to hide in Middle Park, not Meadows Park, but he still mentions the Monoglobe, and Luis tells him to hide there.
 * It is possible to detach the parachute and the player will not fail the mission unless Luis falls to the shore and dies. If the parachute is detached above the ocean, Luis will land in the ocean and will not die, but itwill take a while to swim to shore.
 * The song featured in the parachute scene after Ray's death and Luis' clever remark was No Security by Kelis Ft. The Crookers, this song can also be heard on Electro-Choc.
 * Ray's clothes might change if the mission is replayed frequently.
 * It is possible to kill the guy shooting at you on the runway, and his body will fly off the plane, but the cutscene of Luis shooting him still plays normally.
 * Strangely, Luis asks Tony to hide not far from Bulgarin's house.
 * The Bati Custom used in this mission is scripted to never outrun Yusuf's Buzzard, meaning it will never get caught in Yusuf's rocket blasts, possibly to make this mission easier. It is also the only mission to obtain it in TBOGT.
 * The four-star wanted level earned for entering the airport is also scripted differently; although the wanted level is earned normally, no police officers will spawn in the airport. This was also likely done to make the mission easier, as trying to catch up to the plane while evading police vehicles would be nigh impossible.
 * Oddly, Luis didn't wear a parachute before entering the plane, and there wouldn't have been any time to take one inside the plane as by having an explosion inside the plane, there would have been no chance of Luis' survival, as everyone inside would have been sucked out when the cabin depressurized.
 * This mission has a similar resemblance to the GTA SA mission Stowaway. Luis and Carl must enter the plane by riding the motorcycle given to them up the runway onto either a ramp or stair case. Once on the plane, they need to kill all the passengers on board and complete the main objective. Once finished, the mission ends with Luis And Carl jumping from the destroyed aircraft, and parachuting back down to the ground from extreme hights.
 * It seems slightly unrealistic that while so many shots were fired inside the plane, none of the windows were shattered by bullets, which is a major risk seeing as it would depressurize the entire cabin.
 * During the cutscene where Luis is talking to Tony on the bench, you can hear Yusuf landing his gold Buzzard close to them.
 * Timur mentions Dimitri Rascalov's death in this mission, meaning this mission takes place after the final mission of GTA IV.
 * This is one of two missions to feature both the Diamonds and the Heroin, the other one being The Cousins Bellic.
 * This is one of two missions in which an airplane is destroyed, the other one being Bang Bang.
 * The place in Funland where Luis exits the car is the same place where Roman is picked up by Niko during That Special Someone

Departure Time 100% Mission Walkthrough
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q7IQ7tg_aA

Tips & Tricks

 * Basically, you need to go for the 3rd bin, to your left where you start, the 1st bin. Straight ahead where you start, the 2nd bin, in between bins 1 and 3, and then the 4th bin, to your right where you start. Chase after Timur and kill him.
 * The amusement park is full of propane tanks, and enemies just love to stand by them- shoot the tanks to save bullets.
 * Many surrounding buildings are climbable- stand on them to quick kills to make the time limit, stocking up on sniper rifle ammo beforehand will assist you further.
 * Whilst chasing Bulgarin's jet, push the left stick (XBOX 360/PLAYSTATION 3 controller) forward to increase speed.
 * As you're parachuting to the Monoglobe, hold the left stick (XBox 360/PLAYSTATION 3 controller) back to save airtime and not have to find a car and follow the rules of the roads.
 * After destroying all bins, and Luis and Timur's conversation, quickly get out of cover and use any powerful weapon to kill him around the corner.
 * While parachuting out of the jet, you can release the parachute by pressing Y (X360) or Triangle (PS3) which will make you fall into the water. Best to do this when you can see Luis' arrow next to the ground on the mini-map, but still in the water area. You can swim to shore, find a car (there is a Turismo in Beachgate) and drive to waypoint, which can save a lot of time if done correctly.

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