The 3D Universe is the official name given by Rockstar Games[1][2] to the fictional world where the second-generation games of the Grand Theft Auto franchise take place. Before being officially named by Rockstar, this universe was previously known as the Grand Theft Auto III era and less commonly referred as the PlayStation 2 era.
This generation consisted of six titles released from 2001 to 2006. A game pack containing all "The Definitive Editions" of GTA III, GTA Vice City and GTA San Andreas (entitled Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition) was released on November 11, 2021.
The 3D Universe is known by this name because it introduced fully three-dimensional game graphics, as opposing to the previous 2D Universe. However, one of the games set in it, Grand Theft Auto Advance, uses 2D graphics and the HD Universe, its successor, also uses fully 3D graphics, though improved ones. [1]
The Manhunt series is explicitly connected to the 3D Universe of the Grand Theft Auto series. Both Manhunt and Manhunt 2 share the same businesses, cars, and other environment aspects and props. The main setting of Manhunt, Carcer City, along with the city's own police chief Gary Schaffer, were first mentioned in Grand Theft Auto III, released two years and set two years before the first Manhunt game title.
Daniel Lamb, the protagonist of Manhunt 2, graduated from the University of San Fierro in 1985 with a degree in biochemistry.[3] The most notable tie-in to the GTA series is the use of a SprunkCan as a lure item during the gameplay of both Manhunt games.
Many businesses from the city of Cottonmouth in Manhunt 2, however, including almost all adult entertainment businesses, the Majestic Hotel in the Maibatzu Plaza, and some of the Project's products (such as the H4PP1 pills and Hingmyralgan), were later introduced or mentioned in the HD Universe continuity in Grand Theft Auto IV.
Bully
Bully has several subtle references to both the Grand Theft Auto and Manhunt series.
The 3D Universe rendition of the Regina and Stallion (resembling the Diablo Stallion with a different flame pattern), both sporting a Vice City license plate, can be found inside the Bullworth Academy garage during the Shop class. [4] Dialogues about a "Starkweather movie", implied to be one of his pre-snuff era movies, is mentioned by people of New Coventry.
According to the official Bully website, the events of the game begin sometime in Fall Semester2006, and go all the way up to the summer of 2007.[5]
Further Notes
Bully is also the last Rockstar title using RenderWare, the engine used mainly for their 3D Universe titles. Due to that, there are no references to Bully in the previous games. References are made to Bully and the Bullworth Academy in the HD Universe continuity; however, these are not considered canon to Bully's 3D Universe continuity.
For example, during the events of Bully, the Movie Theater in Old Bullworth Vale is featuring Sequel: The Movie. This movie franchise was later brought back in the HD Universe continuity in Grand Theft Auto V, which features Sequel II.
Errors in Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition
While the story narrative of the original GTA Trilogy (GTA III, GTA Vice City, and GTA San Andreas) are kept untouched in Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition, many elements and other features cause major inconsistencies to the 3D Universe lore, mostly due to reused GTA V assets. For example:
The logo of the Federal Investigation Bureau (FIB), a law enforcement agency from the HD Universe timeline, being incorrectly used instead of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) logo. Characters still correctly refer to them as the FBI, including the agents themselves.
OG Loc CDs being sold in 1986 in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, despite him only becoming famous during the events of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas in 1992.
All of these changes in The Definitive Edition are considered non-canon to the 3D Universe timeline, and are treated as oversights by Grove Street Games.
Grand Theft Auto III (2001) was set in Liberty City (loosely based on New York City, Philadelphia, Detroit and Baltimore[6]) in 2001. This game brought a third-person view to the series, rather than the traditional top-down view of earlier titles (although the view is still made available as an optional camera angle). Graphics were also updated with a new 3D game engine. While not the first of its kind, the gameplay engine had expanded the explorable world, doing away with a traditional game structure where the player faces a "boss" at the end of the level and moves onto a new level, opting instead for more realistic mission-based approach. Multiplayer was discarded (third party mods were later released, allowing for multiplayer gameplay) but GTA III improved in many other areas such as voice-acting and storyline (before, there was speech only in short animated cutscenes between levels, other communication was simply subtitles running on the bottom of the screen). Pop culture is also cemented into GTA III, drawing many aspects and ideas from popular films and shows such as Scarface, Goodfellas, and The Sopranos.
Grand Theft Auto III sold very well and became the first blockbuster game in the series, setting the precedent for subsequent GTA titles to be very successful. GTA III also attracted heavy criticism for its violence against police and its indifference to innocent bystanders, making future games in the GTA series synonymous with violence. Following the success of GTA III, the rest of the games in the 3D Universe are stand-alone prequels, as all take place before GTA III chronologically.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002), was set in Vice City, Florida (based on Miami) in 1986. Influences for the game include movies such as Scarface, Carlito's Way and the TV series Miami Vice. In fact, the basic storyline of the game is an homage to Scarface, including the climactic gunfight in the main character'smansion at the end. GTA Vice City was an improvement on the scale of GTA III, although featured very little in the way of terrain.
Grand Theft Auto Advance
Grand Theft Auto Advance (2004), originally intended to be a top-down conversion of GTA III for the Game Boy Advance, eventually developed its own storyline, set roughly a year before GTA III. The game was set in Liberty City again. The storyline appears to stand alone in the series, as certain aspects of the game contradict those in GTA III.
GTA San Andreas expanded on previous RPG elements, adding the ability to dress the player's character, exercise, and tattoo him. These elements also have an effect on gameplay as other characters would comment on the player character's physique or clothes. The character could also swim (something missing from previous games).
GTA San Andreas also attracted heavy controversy when it was discovered that a sex minigame that was cut from the game could be enabled (See Hot Coffee). As a result, GTA San Andreas was pulled from a number of retail outlets and was re-rated from "M" (Mature) to "AO" (Adults Only) by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) - the first game in the series to be given an AO rating. Rockstar has since released an edited version of the game for the PC, Xbox, and PlayStation 2, and has reclaimed the "M" rating.
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (2005), a PlayStation PortableGTA III prequel set in 1998 Liberty City. A PlayStation 2 port was released by Rockstar Games on June 6, 2006. The game is a direct prequel to GTA III, being set three years earlier and featuring several characters from the original game. The storyline further links the events of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City to GTA III.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (2006), the second PlayStation Portable game, was released on October 31, 2006. It is set in Vice City in 1984 and is a prequel to the events of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (being set two years earlier). A PlayStation 2 port was released by Rockstar on March 6, 2007. This was the last game in the 3D Universe to be released, but it is, by chronological order, the first game of the 3D Universe, being set at the earliest point in the timeline.
The 3D Universe counterpart of Liberty City is based on several US cities (while also having hallmarks of locations in Rockstar North's native Scotland), such as New York City, Philadelphia, Detroit and Baltimore, but with no overall inspiration from one city in particular, [7] while the other counterparts of the city (2D and HD Universes) are based on New York City only.
Liberty City in this universe was established on a different date than the other universes' counterparts.
This universe's New Jersey counterpart, Shoreside Vale, is a mix of New Jersey and Bronx. Also, unlike New Guernsey and Alderney, Shoreside Vale is not a separate state.
The city of San Andreas, the 2D Universe equivalent of San Francisco, is now called San Fierro, while San Andreas is now the name of the state where it is located.
El Burro's counterpart of this universe is Puerto Rican instead of Mexican, and he was not killed in the 3D Universe.
Trivia
Liberty City appears in all 3D Universe games except for Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories. It is the setting of Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, and Grand Theft Auto Advance, and briefly appears at the beginning of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and the Saint Mark's Bistro mission from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Liberty City is also featured in the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas prequel film The Introduction.
None of the games set in this universe featured expansion packs.
All vehicles in this universe can be easily pushed by the player character.
Every 3D Universe game has been released on handheld systems, and most of them are also on mobile devices.
The Definitive Edition remasters of GTA III, GTA Vice City, and GTA San Andreas were ported to the Nintendo Switch.
GTA Advance is exclusive to the Game Boy Advance.
GTA Liberty City Stories and GTA Vice City Stories originated on the PSP and were ported to the PS2.
GTA III, GTA Vice City, GTA San Andreas, and GTA Liberty City Stories were also remade for iOS and Android, with much improved graphics.
Carl Johnson and Victor Vance are the only GTA protagonists in the 3D Universe who can swim.
When the protagonists in this universe (except Mike and Carl Johnson) run with a one-handed weapon (such as a Pistol), they hold the weapon near their face.
Also, when the player taps the button to look back at the protagonist, the protagonist will turn their head and look behind them. Carl Johnson, however, does not do this (Mike cannot look back either since GTA Advance lacks a movable camera to begin with).
Victor Vance is the only protagonist to have a confirmed death (he is killed in introductory cutscene in GTA: Vice City).
GTA: San Andreas is the only game in the 3D Universe not to receive a Stories prequel, as a short film was released explaining the build-up to the GTA: San Andreas storyline.
On September 18, 2009, Rockstar Games stated that the 3D Universe is not necessarily over.[8]
Eventually in October 8, 2021, a Definitive Edition for first three games officially announced.
All vehicles in the 3D Universe have a maximum top speed of 250 km/h (156 mph). The Infernus tops out at 240 km/h (150 mph).
“...the “universes” are the worlds interpreted at different definitions, 2d, 3d and high definition, so we felt brands and radio / back ground characters would exist in both, but 3 dimensional characters would not. This is the logic (as far as it could be considered logical) behind it – so no, we don’t believe any GTA3 characters could exist in the GTA4 universe.”
“The Grand Theft Auto III timeline is not necessarily over - but it is a different world to Grand Theft Auto IV - only the branding and certain radio personalities exist across both worlds. The reason for this was that we felt Grand Theft Auto IV was a high-definition experience and required different kinds of characters. That - and the fact that most people from the previous world are dead.”
