Movies:
Uptown (5MB - Quicktime)
Ajax Cochise Tandem Hurricanes (0.7MB - Quicktime)
Snow Tandem Elbow Hurricanes (1.2MB - Quicktime)
THE BRONX (Gunhill)
GANG: Turnbull ACs
The 1970s were disastrous for the city of New York. After experiencing its greatest loss of population in the history of the city mostly due to poor city government and neighborhood planning, the City teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Throughout this time in the late 70s, without a doubt, the most distressed and affected neighborhood was the south Bronx, just north of the island of Manhattan.
Landlords facing financial ruin would burn down their buildings to try and recover some of their losses from insurance claims. Others burned as a result of accidents related to decaying electrical systems. Residents that remained got used to sleeping with their shoes on, so they could quickly escape if their building began to burn. As vacancy rates increased, building owners were left with no incentive to upgrade or maintain their properties.
Gun Hill Road once had two levels of train service, but the lower level has been abandoned since the termination of El service in 1973. The tracks remain but the neighborhood has suffered irreparable decline. Old signs are still visible, but in the late 70s all that remained were cheap, sleazy motels, bombed-out buildings, back alleys and stairways littered with garbage and debris.
Construction sites are common throughout the Bronx as demolition is necessary to raze hazardous structures. Equipment and scaffolding left for months is a playground for any gang that passes through
Generators and water tanks hum through the night. Turnbull scouts patrol on foot looking out to make sure a rival gang hasn’t staged a turf invasion. A commercial hub for freight trains, the Bronx train yard is always filled with large metal cargo containers and freight trains. The Turnbulls control the main courtyard and hang out there talking trash and smoking cigarettes.
BRONX (Pelham)
GANG: Turnbull ACs
In The Warriors, the vicious Turnbull ACs rule the Bronx and are one of the most feared gangs citywide. Their headquarters is not far from the Pelham St. subway stop. Let’s take a look at the detail and design Rockstar Toronto has put into creating this Bronx neighborhood.
The Pelham subway station is a wide, outdoor cement platform. Enclosed by barbed wire and chain link fences, cops are always watching for gangs crossing the tracks. Keep your head up and watch for oncoming trains. Make sure to stay behind the line when nearing the edge.
In the sewers, fires burn throughout the night in garbage cans. Bums live in tiny metal shacks alongside rivers of sludge and waste.
The official club of the Turnbull ACs, the “Red Devil” is a drinking establishment only for the most hardcore. This out of the way spot always has live music and is definitely for locals only. Avoid the “Red Devil”, especially late at night. The house band at the “Red Devil” rocks hard on and on into the night, but they never really get their rocks off. The crowd sways like zombies as they plod through one bar chords, muddy licks and croaked out vocals. When not listening to music, playing pool or pinball, any Turnbulls in the “Red Devil” can be found over at the bar pounding shots. The power grid in Pelham is the main source of energy for most of the Bronx. Without it the streets wouldn’t be safe for anyone. Next to the power grid is a switching station. Trains periodically pass by on the tracks between the station and the adjacent building. An elevated iron platform surrounds the switching station providing a bird’s eye view of the turf, a notorious Turnbull hangout. Be careful of broken glass from all of the smashed bottles.
BRONX (Tremont)
GANG: Orphans
The neighborhoods encompassing Tremont and East Tremont were once solid, working-class communities, but by the late 1970s, seemingly overnight, burned out apartments replaced modest family homes and turned into havens for drug dealers and addicts. Violent crime increased to barbaric levels and resulted in a virtual leveling of large tracts of land that coincided with the loss of housing stock. Massive housing projects instead were built in order to accommodate the remaining residents with nowhere else to go. The landscape that emerged has been compared to bombed out cities in Germany after World War II. Let’s take a look at where The Orphans hang out and what remains of Tremont and East Tremont in The Warriors.
The Orphans are everywhere in Tremont and usually can be found shooting dice under the elevated train tracks near the subway stop. Their incredible paranoia makes them act crazy and they are always terrified of a potential gang invasion.
Also called the “city on a hill”, it is very common to come across large swaths of rock when entering a new part of the neighborhood that is at a slightly higher elevation. A favorite spot for tagging and graffiti, exposed rock is usually covered in with paint.
Concerned residents shut themselves inside at night and stay off the streets. Gangs are always taking shortcuts through their backyards and hopping fences to get out onto the street quicker.
Next to the Tremont clinic, where most Orphans end up after a serious rumble, several bike repair shops are where biker gangs get their choppers worked on. If you’re in the area, check out the custom painted storefronts and garages.
The headquarters of the Orphans is tucked away deep behind a residential in a large backyard. Hanging lights provide an eerie atmosphere. Lawn furniture and stools are scattered around for when there’s the next meeting.
BRONX (East Tremont)
GANG: Orphans (cont.)
The Orphan turf extends into East Tremont. Boarded up businesses and deserted streets leave the neighborhood feeling really creepy. Check out the Orphans patrolling on the roof of the old drugstore. Even apartment buildings long left abandoned still retain classic, art deco, turn-of-the-century architecture.
Under the train tracks, a closed road has become a graffiti grotto for local writers looking to post up burners and try out new styles.
Get out of the Bronx and hop on the subway at the East Tremont stop which goes downtown, but if you go local it might take awhile.
Check back soon for Part 2 when we take a look at Harlem and downtown New York. PALGN will have one of the first PAL reviews of the game up shortly.
Loading...
