I Marathoned All Mainline Grand Theft Auto Games Ahead of GTA 6, and Here’s My Official Ranking

I was already familiar with the Rockstar Games formula before starting my GTA marathon, since I had already played and loved the Red Dead Redemption games. Going into this marathon, I was expecting a similar experience, just replacing the Wild West with modern parodies of the US. After playing the entire mainline series, I can see why Grand Theft Auto has become such a beloved franchise, and it’s impressive just how much these games have evolved over time and consistently pushed the envelope for the open-world genre.

7

Grand Theft Auto 1

Look, the original GTA for the PS1 that spawned the legendary series has not aged all that well nearly 30 years later. While I can see how it was impressive for the time, being a chaotic, carnage-filled crime fest featuring an open map for players to cause mayhem on, it has very little of what makes the Grand Theft Auto series so beloved today. The story in Grand Theft Auto 1 is basically non-existent, and most missions follow the simple gameplay loop of getting orders from a payphone, getting in a car and racing around city streets to find the objective, then getting the next mission from another payphone, and repeat.

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There are some instances of gunfights and police chases, but ultimately, there isn’t a lot of substance to GTA 1. This wouldn’t be too bad as a fun arcade game if the top-down view and lack of an in-game map weren’t literally making it a headache to play. The camera constantly zooms in and out on the player whenever they crash into a car, which started to make me nauseous after just a little while of playing. Plus, it’s nearly impossible to figure out where you’re going since the only map was the physical one that came with the original PS1 disc back in the day.

Released

November 28, 1997

ESRB

m

Developer(s)

Rockstar North

Publisher(s)

BMG Interactive

Engine

RAGE

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6

Grand Theft Auto 2

Although it’s not nearly as good as the rest of the series, Grand Theft Auto 2 is a clear step up from its predecessor. This entry introduces the faction system that would become prominent in future entries, allowing players to undergo missions for various factions around “Anywhere, USA,” rather than Liberty City, Vice City, or Los Santos. This makes GTA 2 kind of the black sheep of the franchise, as it adopts an odd retro futurist art style and deviates from the settings that are iconic to the series as a whole.

While it’s cool to see the interactions between factions and manage your reputation with each one, often having to kill competing factions in order to appease another, GTA 2 on PS1 still suffers from some of the original’s biggest drawbacks. The overhead camera is still a pain to deal with, and despite being somewhat less nauseating, I still couldn’t play the game for more than a short burst before getting sick. Thankfully, the presence of a save game feature allowed me to take a break after just a few missions, unlike GTA 1.

Released

February 13, 1999

ESRB

m

Engine

RenderWare

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5

Grand Theft Auto 3

I know the ranking has been going in release order so far, but it’s only because there’s a clear progression of the GTA series developing its identity and improving mechanics as it moves from the 2D era into the 3D era. As such, GTA 3 is the first game that truly feels like a modern entry in the franchise. The dreaded top-down camera is gone in favor of an over-the-shoulder, third-person view, which makes traversing Liberty City much easier.

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Grand Theft Auto 3 also has much more of a story than the previous entries, following the protagonist Claude as he works various jobs for Liberty City’s factions like the Leone Family, the Yakuza, the Colombian Cartel, and the Yardies after being betrayed by his lover and partner in crime, Catalina. There aren’t a lot of cutscenes or complex characters in GTA 3, especially since Claude himself is a silent protagonist, but the full voice acting of the rest of the cast dramatically improves the game’s storytelling. The radio stations and soundtrack of GTA 3 also massively contribute to the experience, building out the game’s world with news and DJ parodies that set the tone for the franchise going forward.

However, there are still some serious flaws with GTA 3, such as the weird driving physics that make some cars feel way too floaty and easy to lose control of. Combat mechanics are also pretty bare bones, and there are several incredibly frustrating missions that are compounded by the fact that there are no mission checkpoints. For example, the Waka-Gashira Wipeout mission is annoyingly tough due to how easily your car can explode while trying to take out the yakuza leader, and the Drop in the Ocean mission took me forever to beat because of how aggressive the police get once you hit a Wanted Level of 5 in GTA 3.

Released

October 23, 2001

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood, Strong Language, Violence

4

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Vice City takes basically everything that GTA 3 did well and makes it better. Right off the bat, having Tommy Vercetti as a voice protagonist immediately makes the story more engaging, and the entire cast of GTA: Vice City is stacked as well. Tommy himself is voiced by Ray Liotta, giving the protagonist the perfect Liberty City mobster turned Vice City drug kingpin voice. Other cast members include Luis Guzman as Ricardo Diaz, Burt Reynolds as Avery Carrington, and Danny Trejo as Umberto Robina.

Gameplay-wise, Vice City feels similar to GTA 3 but with some noticeable improvements to how vehicles and weapons handle. Boats, especially, have improved controls, making missions that require precise boat maneuvers like The Fastest Boat much more enjoyable. The overall diversity in mission types is also a major step up from GTA 3, ranging from simple assassinations to tailing missions and even a full-blown heist, which would set the stage for future GTA games to follow.

The major drawbacks of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City come from the Asset Missions that are required to complete the game. As Tommy proceeds to build a criminal empire in Vice City, he takes over several industries to keep a constant cash flow. However, the game never really makes it clear that these missions are required to progress the story, so I ended up getting stuck for a while before giving up and looking up how to move forward.

Released

October 29, 2002

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Violence

3

Grand Theft Auto 5

There is a lot to love about the most recent entry in the Grand Theft Auto series, but I don’t think GTA 5 is necessarily the series at its best. The positives of GTA 5 definitely outweigh the negatives, such as the fantastic attention to detail throughout GTA 5‘s map of Los Santos that makes it really feel like a living, breathing city, with NPCs that react appropriately to your actions. Being able to participate in a variety of random side activities, like getting Trevor a new tattoo or playing a match of tennis, are also fun distractions that aid in the game’s world-building.

Where GTA 5 really shines is in its characters, with a trio of protagonists appearing for the first time in the series. Michael, Franklin, and Trevor are all interesting in their own ways, but GTA 5‘s Trevor is by far the most unhinged character I’ve ever met in a video game and I think he really carries GTA 5‘s story. Otherwise, the story of Grand Theft Auto 5 is just okay, with Michael having the most complete character arc. However, outside GTA 5‘s Heist Missions, the game feels a bit directionless beyond looking out for the next big score so that the trio can finally retire and shed themselves of the FIB’s influence.

GTA 5‘s gameplay mechanics are definitely the most fleshed out in the series, with driving feeling solid and controlling classic GTA vehicles like planes and helicopters a much smoother experience. There are also far more vehicles than any entry in the series, making it the perfect sandbox to complete crazy stunts and customize cars perfectly to the player’s liking. I also really appreciate that each character has a specialization that makes them valuable in different situations: Michael specializes in stealth, Franklin in driving, and Trevor in combat.

Released

September 17, 2013

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol

Developer(s)

Rockstar North

2

Grand Theft Auto 4

By far the darkest entry in the Grand Theft Auto series is GTA 4, and that’s one of the reasons I hold it in such high regard. While elements of GTA‘s product and brand parodies still exist, those largely take a backseat to the gritty mob drama that Niko Bellic finds himself embroiled in. From the first instance of meeting Niko, it’s clear that he has a dark past, and while goofy characters like Roman and Brucie play off of Niko’s brooding tendencies, his tortured demeanor and quest for revenge keep the game grounded.

The story of GTA 4 is incredibly tragic, with Niko essentially becoming a hitman for the Russian, Irish, and Italian mafias over the course of the game. One of my favorite missions in the entire series is Three Leaf Clover, where Niko and the McCrearys pull off a bank heist in the middle of Liberty City. The intense action that follows this heist gone wrong is thrilling and represents the high point of GTA mission design, clearly influencing a lot of Rockstar projects that followed, such as GTA 5 and the Red Dead Redemption games.

I also really like the feel of driving in GTA 4, with cars having a more realistic weight and handling than other entries. However, I do have issues with some of the game’s other vehicles, especially GTA 4‘s helicopters. Several missions, including GTA 4‘s finale, require the player to pilot a helicopter, and the controls for these vehicles felt intentionally obtuse and took some of the focus off the story while I wrestled with trying to maneuver the chopper.

Released

April 29, 2008

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol

1

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

The most impressive GTA game I played and my favorite of the franchise was Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Going into the game, I had only known about the CJ and Big Smoke memes, but actually experiencing these characters for the first time completely changed my perception of San Andreas. As the last game in the 3D era before GTA moved onto the HD era, San Andreas is incredibly ambitious in its world, mechanics, and story, leaving an impact on me that will surely last a lifetime.

The world of San Andreas is massive, encompassing not only Los Santos, but two other cities and the rural areas in between as well. Leaving Los Santos after the first act truly revealed how massive the map of San Andreas is, and then realizing there was still San Fierro and Las Venturas to explore made this reveal even more astounding. For a game of that time to have such a robust map, packed with side missions like gang territory control and activities like working out, eating meals, and romance options, it’s clear that San Andreas is the defining GTA game.

Story-wise, I felt that San Andreas has both the most grounded and most bizarre depiction of crime in the franchise. The Grove Street Family arc is a tragic one of betrayal at the hands of the corrupt Officer Tenpenny, pushing CJ and Sweet apart as they are forced to watch their community fall to the crack epidemic that Tenpenny has helped create.

However, the other allies CJ meets along the way back to the top, such as Woozie, Cesar, and the Truth, are incredibly endearing and memorable additions to the cast, if not completely off the wall at some points. The final GTA: San Andreas mission, where CJ confronts Big Smoke and then chases Tenpenny across Los Santos while Sweet dangles from a hijacked fire truck, is one of the most insane endings in the franchise, and solidified San Andreas as my favorite of the bunch.

Released

October 26, 2004

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs

Engine

RenderWare