Template:Infobox video game series
This article is about the Grand Theft Auto series. For the first game in the series, see Grand Theft Auto 1. For the mission in GTA III, see Grand Theft Auto (mission).
Grand Theft Auto (GTA) is a long-running series of video games, published by Rockstar Games and developed by subsidiary companies. The games are primarily developed by Rockstar North (formerly DMA Design).
There are currently sixteen games in the series, plus two expansion packs for the original and two expansions for GTA IV and including a multiplayer title. The games have been released for various platforms, including the PC, PSX, PS2, Xbox, PS3, Xbox 360, PS4, Xbox One, GBC, DC, GBA, PSP, DS, iPhone and Android with all but two of the games released on multiple platforms.
There has been much controversy involving the series. The unofficial Hot Coffee mod and subsequent uproar gave Rockstar Games a huge amount of press attention.
Grand Theft Auto currently holds 10 world gaming records, including the Most Guest Stars in a Video Game Series, Largest Voice Cast in a Video Game (Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas), Largest In-Game Soundtrack (Grand Theft Auto IV), and Most Successful Entertainment Launch Of All Time (Grand Theft Auto V). The Grand Theft Auto series are also ranked 5 in the best-selling video game franchises of all time.
Overview
The games allow the player to take on the role of a criminal in a big city, typically an individual who rises through the ranks of organised crime through the course of the game. Various missions are set for completion by the figureheads of the city underworld, generally criminal, which must be completed to progress through the storyline. Assassinations, and other crimes feature regularly, but occasionally taxi driving, firefighting, pimping, street racing, or learning to fly fixed-wing aircraft are also involved as alternate adventures, which can be done at any time during the game, with the exception of the periods performing main missions.
The Grand Theft Auto series, belonging to a genre of free-roaming video games called "sandbox games," grants a large amount of freedom to the player in deciding what to do and how to do it through multiple methods of transport and weapons. Unlike most traditional action games, which are structured as a single track series of levels with linear gameplay, in GTA the player can determine the missions they want to undertake, and their relationships with various characters are changed based on these choices. The cities of the games can also be roamed freely at any point in the game, offering many accessible buildings and minor missions. There are exceptions: missions follow a linear, overarching plot, and some city areas must be unlocked over the course of the game.
Setting
See: Grand Theft Auto World and United States of America.
Games
| Game | Universe | Year | Set In | Protagonist(s) | Platform(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Theft Auto 1 | 2D | 1997 | 1997 | Player's choice | PC, PlayStation, Game Boy Color |
| Grand Theft Auto 2 | 2D | 1999 | 2013 | Claude Speed | PC, PlayStation, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color |
| Grand Theft Auto III | 3D | 2001 | 2001 | Claude | PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox, iOS devices, Android devices |
| Grand Theft Auto IV | HD | 2008 | 2008 | Niko Bellic | PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 |
| Grand Theft Auto V | HD | 2013 | 2013 | Michael De Santa Franklin Clinton Trevor Philips |
PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One |
Individual games in the series can be categorized into different "universes", which mostly depend on the storyline and the graphics engine used. The start of a new "universe" is indicated by the graphics used in the game.
2D Universe
In the 2D Universe there is the original game, the subsequent two expansion packs featuring missions in 1960s London, and GTA 2, which featured an improved graphics engine and a different style of gameplay. Whilst originally just called "Grand Theft Auto", the first game and era have become known as "GTA 1" for clarity.
- 1. Grand Theft Auto (1997) - Available for the PlayStation, PC and Game Boy Color. Features the cities of Liberty City, San Andreas, and Vice City.
- 2. Grand Theft Auto (Mission Pack #1): London 1969 (1999) - An expansion pack, available for the PlayStation and PC, set in London.
- 3. Grand Theft Auto (Mission Pack #2): London 1961 (1999) - A further expansion to London 1969, available only as a free download for the PC.
- 4. Grand Theft Auto 2 (1999) - Available for the PlayStation, PC, Dreamcast, and Game Boy Color. The game is set in Anywhere City. GTA 2 is the only GTA game to have a digit in the title instead of a Roman Numeral. It is the only game to have a T rating.
3D Universe
The 3D Universe featured the first blockbuster GTA title, Grand Theft Auto III, and introduced a 3D game world and third-person perspective. The entire era contains interlocking storylines, and many characters appear across multiple games. Notably, games in this era were not released in chronological order, with the first game released being the last chronologically, and the last game released being the first chronologically.
- 5. Grand Theft Auto III (2001) - Set in fictional Liberty City, based upon the real life New York City. Multiplayer mode was removed, but other areas were much improved, namely the graphics, voice acting, storyline with non-linear gameplay.
- 6. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002) - Set in Vice City, a city based on real life Miami. This sequel to GTA III is technically a prequel (set in 1986) to the game, and to GTA San Andreas, which was released after GTA Vice City.
- 7. Grand Theft Auto Advance (2004) - What was originally supposed to be a stripped-down port of GTA III for the Game Boy Advance turned out to be a completely original game, set a year before GTA III, in a slightly altered Liberty City.
- 8. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004) - Set in the state of San Andreas, GTA San Andreas featured three cities, Los Santos, San Fierro and Las Venturas, based on Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas respectively. The game is set in 1992, making it a sequel to GTA Vice City, and prequel to GTA III. The game featured many customisation options for both the player and vehicles.
- See also: The Introduction
- 9. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (2005) - A prequel to GTA III set in Liberty City in 1998. Originally for the PlayStation Portable, a PS2 port was released in June 2006 without multiplayer.
- 10. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (2006) - Announced on May 10th during E3, Vice City Stories is set in Vice City in 1984, two years before the original GTA Vice City. It was released in October 2006 for the PSP. A PS2 port was released later without multiplayer in March 2007.
It is the final game of the 3D Universe.
HD Universe
The HD Universe features Rockstar's new RAGE engine, also used in Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis. This era features
- 11. Grand Theft Auto IV (2008) - Set in 2008 in a redesigned Liberty City, with new game mechanics, a multiplayer mode, and with protagonist Niko Bellic trying to start a new life. GTA IV was released for Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 on April 28th, 2008, with a PC release on December 2nd, 2008.
- 12. The Lost and Damned (2009) - A downloadable episode released in February 2009 for the Xbox 360. TLAD is set in the same Liberty City as GTA IV, with events and characters overlapping with GTA IV. The protagonist is Johnny Klebitz, vice-president of The Lost Motorcycle Club. It is also available on a disc Episodes From Liberty City which includes The Ballad of Gay Tony also. It was released on PC (Games for Windows - LIVE) and PlayStation 3 in April 2010.
- 13. The Ballad of Gay Tony (2009) - A second episode for GTA IV released in October 2009, the last DLC for GTA IV. The protagonist is Luis Lopez, a part-time hoodlum and full-time assistant to legendary nightclub impresario "Gay" Tony Prince. It was released on the same day as Episodes From Liberty City disc. It was released on PC (Games for Windows - LIVE) and PlayStation 3 in April 2010.
- 14. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (2009) - Set in 2009 and focusing on the Liberty City Triads. The protagonist, Huang Lee is the son of a murdered Triad boss who comes to Liberty City. It is set in the same Liberty City as GTA IV (excluding Alderney, but scaled down for the Nintendo DS). PSP, iPhone, Android and Kindle Fire ports were released later, the PSP version including new missions and characters, and all new versions including new radio stations and improved graphics.
- 15. Grand Theft Auto V (2013) - Set in 2013 in a redesigned Los Santos. According to Rockstar, Grand Theft Auto V is their biggest open world game to date. The game concentrates on "the pursuit of the almighty dollar". For the first time since the 2D Universe, the game features more than one protagonist, with three playable protagonists, Michael De Santa, Franklin Clinton, and Trevor Philips. The multiplayer mode has been expanded into its own game, dubbed Grand Theft Auto Online.
- 16. Grand Theft Auto Online (2013) - Set shortly before the events of Grand Theft Auto V in 2013, is considered by Rockstar to be the series' first multiplayer title. The player assumes the role of an online protagonist, with the focus of the game being heavily centered on money. Grand Theft Auto Online was released on October 1, 2013, 14 days after Grand Theft Auto V, and is accessible via the GTA V disc.
The Fan Base
Grand Theft Auto has one of the largest fan bases of any game franchise. There are many unofficial Fansites about GTA games, providing the latest news, download databases, and often an online forum for the GTA community. Thousands of GTA fansites exist, ranging from small one-person news blogs to community-edited wikis (like this one) to massive downloads databases to forums with hundreds of thousands of members.
An activity popular with fans is modding - creating new vehicle models, skins, re-texturing of objects, and tweaking settings in the games' configuration files. These modifications are made freely available on fansites for anyone to download and install into their game. Another popular pastime (since GTA III) is stunting - the act of performing wild stunts with vehicles, which are produced into compilation videos.
Another activity popular with members of the community is writing Fan Fiction - stories based on events which follow on from, or are based around events which happen in the games, but these are not to be considered canon.
The List of GTA Forums attempts to list all of the large communities, and by demonstrating just how big the community as a whole is.
These are a list of some of the most popular fan sites:
- GTA Forums
- GTA Legende.com
- The GTA Place
- GTA Net
- Planet GTA
- GTA Warehouse
- GTA-SanAndreas
- RockstarWatch.net
- GTA V.Net
Official Sites
- Grand Theft Auto series
- Grand Theft Auto: Double Pack
- Free download of Grand Theft Auto, Wild Metal and Grand Theft Auto 2
el:Grand Theft Auto fa:Grand Theft Auto