Personal Computer

A Personal Computer (or PC) may refer to a desktop or laptop computer that is used for personal tasks such as browsing the Internet and gaming, rather than business or server functions. PCs are often refered to Windows Computers and in some cases, Linux Computers as well. In relation to the Grand Theft Auto series, the PC has long been a traditional "platform" for GTA games.

The PC is also the only system to include games from all three Grand Theft Auto Universes (2D, 3D, and HD).

Description
Because the computing power of a PC is not bound by strict standards by a single manufacturer, the PC platform is the most versatile, supporting modular upgrades. Being one of the earliest platforms to support Internet connections, this allowed early Grand Theft Auto games such as the first Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto 2 to support multiplayer modes whilst online capabilities on consoles were still in their infancy. PC versions of several GTA games also feature considerably improved graphics. PC GTA games are also the earliest games in the series to adopt custom radio stations and replays with the release of Grand Theft Auto III, as well as the short-lived ability to pick custom skins for the protagonist.

Modifications
Another notable advantage of the PC platform is their inherent ability to support third party utilities and modifications, which allows users to alter various aspects of GTA games. Some add in whole new features, which is commonly seen in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Some modifications are designed purely to make the game look better visually, which is a common mod option for Grand Theft Auto IV.

Emulation
Another considerable advantage is the ability to emulate other platforms like handheld/PlayStation 2/mobile enabling titles to be played via software and use controllers.

Video Editor
With the GTA IV PC version, Rockstar introduced an exclusive video editor that allow players to create, edit and share their own videos recorded while playing the game. This video editor later came back on the Grand Theft Auto V PC version, now named Rockstar Editor, featuring numerous improvements.

Issues
Like consoles, weaknesses are also present in the PC platform. The wide variety of hardware configurations present in the PC market and the presence of custom built or upgraded machines means there are inconsistent hardware capabilities among every PC in use. This may impede the ability for some players to play PC games smoothly or with the best graphics available. The game developers try to accommodate this by incorporating sliding scales of graphic and processing detail in their PC titles which allows low specification hardware to run the game at a playable framerate with drastically reduced visual detail.

The adoption of the Rockstar Advanced Game Engine for GTA IV, for example, led to a jump in the required amount of processing from the last PC port (GTA: San Andreas, which utilized RenderWare); many PCs in use during the release of GTA IV were found to be inadequate to run the game smoothly, even with the lowest graphical settings, due to what is widely considered a poorly implemented port. It required high-powered CPUs and mid-high end GPUs to provide the PC player with anywhere near the console player's experience. The wide range of hardware components on offer for the PC, making decisions on parts difficult for new builders, as well as the need to keep hardware driver software up to date, may also lead to incompatibilities that result in undesired glitches in graphics and audio or even instability in the game. Rockstar Games has never fixed the issues of the PC version of GTA IV, nor have they made efforts to convert it from Games for Windows – Live to Steam. GTA V had faced similar issues, with occasional stutters even at minimum requirements.

Release Pattern
Until Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto releases for the PC platform were given some degree of equal treatment as the PlayStation, having been released simultaneously with or launched a week after the PlayStation version. The GTA series is also known to have a single PC-exclusive title, Grand Theft Auto: London, 1961, which was available only for download (at a time when gaming consoles had yet to extensively adopt online downloads). The release gap between console versions and PC versions was widened with GTA III and several more major GTA titles after, in which the native console version(s) is first released, followed by the PC port several months later, if not longer.

For some reason, GTA titles which are native to handheld consoles (Grand Theft Auto Advance, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars) have never been ported to the PC.

After Grand Theft Auto V was released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles on September 17, 2013, PC users wanted Rockstar to make a PC version of the game with some even beginning a petition. After a lengthy wait Sony announced at the Electronics Entertainment Expo 2014 that GTA V would be released for the PlayStation 4 in the fall of 2014, this was closely followed by a trailer and official announcement by Rockstar Games that it would finally also be coming to the PS4, Xbox One and PC. On 12 September 2014, Rockstar announced that the PC version will be released on 27 January 2015. On 13 January 2015, however, it was announced that the PC release had been pushed back to 24 March 2015. On 24 February, it was announced that the PC release had again been pushed back to 14 April 2015.

The PC version was released on 14 April 2015.

System Requirements for GTA Games
The following tables specify:


 * 1) the official minimum hardware and software configurations to run a title on a PC
 * 2) the official recommended hardware to run the title
 * 3) the unofficial optimal hardware to run the title at maximum settings with a playable frame rate.

Navigation
Personal Computer