All three iterations of Liberty City in the Grand Theft Auto universe; from top to bottom: Liberty City in the 2D Universe, Liberty City in the 3D Universe and Liberty City in the HD Universe.
The Grand Theft Auto universes are a collection of alternate parallel dimensions and realities created by Rockstar North (formerly known as DMA Design) for each type of narrative within the Grand Theft Auto series.
The series is divided into three distinct parallel universes, officially named by Rockstar North as the "2D Universe", "3D Universe" and the "HD Universe", with each continuity sharing a similar universal hierarchy (city names, brands, companies, vehicles, etc.).
Description[]
The Grand Theft Auto series is split into separate fictional parallel universes, officially named by Rockstar North as the "2D Universe", "3D Universe" and the "HD Universe" – each one named after the primary level of graphics capability used in each era.
The three universes are designed to be completely separate to each other so that no physically appearing characters or storylines would overlap.
Each universe is considered separate with only brands, location names and in-game media personalities (celebrities and radio DJs) shared between universes, yet still unrelated to their previous continuity versions.
The names "Liberty City", "San Andreas" and "Vice City" are also reused in each separate reality as part of a tradition created by Rockstar North, and as a recurring homage to the series' top-down roots.
Separate Timelines Map[]
The following map shows the current timeline of the series' three separate universes created by Rockstar North.
The Universes[]
2D Universe[]
The 2D Universe refers to the first original Grand Theft Auto universe created by DMA Design (prior to Rockstar Games' acquisition of the studio). The universe follows the continuity started in the original Grand Theft Auto, loosely connected via promotional material.
This universe is notorious for the 2D top-down arcade-like gameplay, with a high score system.
There are a total of four games (including two expansion packs for the original game) that take place in the 2D Universe:
3D Universe[]
The 3D Universe refers to the second Grand Theft Auto universe created by Rockstar North (formerly DMA Design). The universe follows the new continuity started by Grand Theft Auto III, and subsequent prequels to its story. The 3D Universe continuity is shared with Rockstar North's Manhunt series.
The classic Top-Down Perspective camera is also featured in Grand Theft Auto Advance and optionally in Grand Theft Auto III.
- Grand Theft Auto III
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
- Grand Theft Auto Advance
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
- Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
HD Universe[]
The HD Universe refers to the current Grand Theft Auto universe created by Rockstar North. The universe follows the new continuity started by Grand Theft Auto IV. Each major title in this universe is set in the game's current year of release.
So far it includes seven games, including a standalone two-part expansion pack for Grand Theft Auto IV, the series' long-running multiplayer title, and an upcoming title:
- Grand Theft Auto IV
- Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City
- Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
- Grand Theft Auto V
- Grand Theft Auto Online
- Grand Theft Auto VI
Characterization[]
Aside from the reused fictional city names, there are other features that defines the characterization of the Grand Theft Auto world and its three distinct iterations overall, all of which uses different techniques of satire - mainly sexual innuendos and contemporary political jokes.
Rockstar North's Scottish Roots[]
Recreation of Scottish bridges in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
While the series are mainly focused on American satire, the Grand Theft Auto series are notable for its references to Scottish culture, a humble homage to Rockstar North's own Scottish origin.
Particularly in the 3D Universe, Liberty City is a hybrid of New York City with several other cities in the Midwestern United States (essentially referred to as a "New York-ish city" and "Parody of the East Coast around the time of the millennium" by Sam Houser). The city features areas inspired by real-life British locations, such as Soho's Chinatown in London (as Portland's Chinatown neighborhood) and Leith-inspired harbors in Grand Theft Auto III.
Scottish landmarks such as the Forth Bridge and Forth Road Bridge from Edinburgh (capital of Scotland) are also used as basis for in-universe American landmarks in the 3D Universe, appearing as the Kincaid Bridge and Garver Bridge in San Fierro respectively, both names referencing Scottish ancient family names.
Other Scottish references include flight destinations and vacation adverts to Dundee, the birthplace of the Scottish games industry, where some of the world's biggest game titles were created, including Rockstar North/DMA Design's Lemmings and the Grand Theft Auto franchise.
Brands and Taglines[]
Each of the Grand Theft Auto universes are mainly identified by their overly-satirical worlds and many elements such as location names, brands and taglines with double meaning using Rockstar's humor. Sexual innuendos and jokes on modern society are abundant across all three iterations of the GTA world and are used ever since the series' debut, many of which crosses over with Manhunt.
The most common joke used in the creation of these worlds is the use of the number "69" for various locations. 69¢ Stores are also very common throughout these worlds.
Vehicles and Manufacturers[]
Main articles: Vehicles and Vehicle Brands
"Classic American Cars" poster inside a player-owned Auto Shop in Grand Theft Auto Online.
In the Grand Theft Auto series, all of the in-game vehicles are fictional. All vehicles are given fictional names (both model and manufacturer), as well as numerous design inspirations. In-game names and quotes may also hint references to real-life sources.
In many cases, vehicles originating from a previous universe are brought back to a new universe with a complete redesign, a new manufacturer name and a different fabrication year. Vehicle descriptions provided by in-game car dealership websites makes subtle references to the vehicle's original appearances in the series (i.e. Greenwood/Locust).
Manufacturer names existed as early as the series' debut, although starting to have a slightly bigger role in the series in the 3D Universe. They are often advertised on radio stations and named on car dealerships across cities. The most prominent one being Maibatsu Corporation, which is also featured in the Manhunt series. Unseen 3D Universe Maibatsu vehicles are commonly mentioned throughout both franchises.
These manufacturer names would later be brought back and be greatly expanded for the HD Universe, where most vehicles have a designated brand. As of Grand Theft Auto V, the car brand names began being displayed alongside the vehicle's name on the HUD upon entering a vehicle.
Religion[]
Promotional website for the Cultstoppers group in Grand Theft Auto V.
Religions are also satirized throughout the series as earlier as the original Grand Theft Auto.
The Hare Krishna movement plays a major role in the 2D Universe, originally appearing in the first title as a group of monks chanting walking in line. When running over the Hare Krishna, a "GOURANGA!" bonus is given to the player, a term used by the Krishna for "happiness". By the time the retro-futuristic events of Grand Theft Auto 2 take place, the Hare Krishna has become a major religion-based American crime syndicate due to their followers being constantly and randomly run-over by the original GTA protagonists.
In Grand Theft Auto 2, in order to save the player's progress, they must pay $5000 dollars to a preacher in a Jesus Saves church to "save their soul", an obvious joke on churches asking for donations in exchange of the person's salvation.
The Scientology-inspired Epsilon Program is a religion existing in two different forms in both the 3D and HD Universes, established by Cris Formage, one of the many media celebrities allowed to "cross universes".
In both universes, the Epsilonists' beliefs are essentially the same, including its 12 tenets, their "Kraff" deity, the use of the word "Kifflom", and their aversion towards ginger-haired people, whom they believe are strictly prohibited from being linked to their religion.[1] In addition, in both universes, the Epsilonists believe that descendants of Kraff can be identified by a large birthmark around the person's right eye and a smaller one in the upper right cheek.[2] A red truck is also associated with the religion's initiation process in both universes.
Aside from the rebranded Epsilon Program, the HD Universe introduced several new religions and cults, including the Children of the Mountain and the Altruist Cult, and anti-religion society groups such as the Cultstoppers.
Pre-historical Events[]
Ye Olde Wank Shoppe in the old Colony of New Rotterdam/Liberty in the 17th century, one of oldest known storefronts in the HD Universe.
The satirical nature of the Grand Theft Auto worlds goes as far as its pre-historical events.
In the 2D Universe canon, Liberty City (established in 1603) was originally a land owned by native Indians until it was bought by Belgian settlers for just $37, a barrel of mead and a sack of feathers, before establishing the Liberty City boroughs of Brocklyn, Kings, Brix and Liberty Island.
In the HD Universe canon, Liberty City (established in 1609 as New Rotterdam) was found by British explorer Horatio Humboldt by accident, after being hired by the Dutch to find some land to sell marijuana. Ironically, the river in which he shipped was said to be "coincidentally" named the Humboldt by the natives prior to his arrival. The new Dutch colony of New Rotterdam would later be wiped out by the British in 1664, renaming the area "Liberty City". Soon after, the Liberty City boroughs would be established - Broker, Dukes, Bohan and Algonquin.
In both the 3D and HD Universes, a major conflict between the United States and Australia, dubbed the Australian-American War, happened after the World War II and before any on-screen events. A veteran of the war briefly mentions how the Australians equipped boomerangs and kangaroos with explosives during the conflict. This event have never occurred in real-life. The outcome of the war is left ambiguous in the 3D Universe, while in the HD Universe it is revealed that the Americans won the war.
Media Personalities[]
OG Loc's debut album Str8 From Tha Streetz.
As per Rockstar's own logic, background characters such as media personalities, radio DJs and celebrities are the only types of characters who can exist in multiple realities, as they don't play a major role in storyline. Meanwhile, important characters used in the narrative of older games (including protagonists, sidekicks, villains, etc.) and events surrounding them are simply scrapped and ignored in the next generation of games in favor of the new continuity created by them.
This is the reason why celebrities such as Jack Howitzer, Crow, OG Loc, Madd Dogg, and DJs like Fernando Martinez, Andee, Cliff Lane appear in a similar way in more than one universe, yet still considered different variants of their previous characters.
As Easter eggs, previous world's events and story characters are often indirectly referenced through innuendos, without officially canonizing them as part of the current world.
Rockstar People Appearances[]
Main article: Real People in GTA
Real-life DJ Lazlow Jones portrayed a fictional version of himself in two separate continuities of the series.
Special cameo appearances of Rockstar/DMA key people have happened as earlier as its first entry, with the game's director Keith Hamilton giving random messages to the player via pager, such as "Observe the proper speed limits!" and "Obey the rules of the road!", and indirectly portraying a fictionalized version of himself as a Triad member and sending the player to collect the packages of "Humour", "Gameplay", "Fun", and "Sweary Words" to create a substance named "GTA".
In the 3D Universe, there are multiple impersonations of Sam Houser, President of Rockstar Games, including a gun store owner named Sam and a generic fast-food server found across Vice City. A statue of Sam can be found at the Downtown Square in San Fierro. Sam Houser's brother Dan Houser, former VP of Creativity at Rockstar Games, also voiced a businessman in Grand Theft Auto III and a recurring hacker named Emanuel in the 3D Universe. The Houser brothers would also later bring their parents to voice other minor characters. Co-founder Terry Donovan have also appeared in the promotional movie for Grand Theft Auto 2, portraying a Hare Krishna convert.
The most notable real-life person to appear in the series is Jeffrey Crawford Jones, also known as Lazlow, a major contributor to the series' radio stations, in-game commercials and pedestrian dialogue.
Lazlow portrays a fictional rendition of himself, as an in-universe celebrity and radio host with a long-time media career. After the series' reboot, Lazlow's character was brought back for the HD Universe (briefly referred to as "Lazlow 2.0" by himself as a meta-joke), with minor alterations to his background story to fit the new continuity of the series started in Grand Theft Auto IV. In the HD Universe, Lazlow's career start was slightly different, with a different birthplace, birthyear, different fictional relatives, but keeping consistency with his previous iteration's story.
Lazlow also voiced an unnamed taxi driver with Indian accent in Grand Theft Auto III, and one of the DJ guests on Boy Sanchez's Rise FM mix.
Reused Names[]
Location Names[]
The chapter selection menu in Grand Theft Auto, introducing Liberty City, San Andreas and Vice City.
As part of the tradition created by Rockstar North in the early 2000s, the names "Liberty City", "San Andreas" and "Vice City" are reused across each new universe created, as a homage to the series roots.
Each of the names are always tied to spoofs of the same real-life city - New York City, San Francisco and Miami, respectively. "San Andreas" would later be rebranded as the California-inspired state's name in which San Fierro (San Francisco) is located.
With each new reboot of the series, the background story of each city is completely rewritten (establishment dates, district names, etc.), including Manhunt settings, notably the new unseen Carcer City mentioned in Grand Theft Auto V, in order to prevent an overlap of stories between universes.
Some of the examples include:
| In real-life | 2D Universe | 3D Universe | HD Universe |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cities | |||
New York City
|
Liberty City | Liberty City | Liberty City |
| San Francisco | San Andreas | San Fierro RET | San Fierro |
| Miami | Vice City | Vice City | Vice City |
| Miami Beach | Vice Beach (Not a city) | Vice City Beach (Not a city) | Vice Beach |
Los Angeles
|
Unnamed | Los Santos
|
Los Santos |
| Compton | Unnamed | Ganton (Not a city) | Davis |
| Las Vegas | Unnamed | Las Venturas | Las Venturas |
| New Orleans | Unnamed | Cottonmouth | New Orleans |
| States | |||
| State of New York | State of Liberty | State of Liberty | State of Liberty |
| State of New Jersey | State of New Guernsey | Shoreside Vale (Not a state) | State of Alderney |
| State of California | Unnamed | State of San Andreas | State of San Andreas |
| State of Nevada | Unnamed | Northern San Andreas | Unnamed |
| State of Florida | Unnamed | State of Florida | State of Leonida RET |
Similarity of Events[]
In the HD Universe, there are multiple mentions to events. These mentions are references to the previous universe as fan service to the players, while at the same time, they are canonically a separate unrelated yet similar event.
For example, certain major events such as the Los Santos Riots depicted in the 3D Universe are said to have happened at some point in the HD Universe. These events are not considered the same events, as they are triggered by different reasons, with a different outcome and different characters involved. Both of the riots in each universe are inspired by the real-life 1992 Los Angeles Riots.
Other examples of similar events includes a Ballas-Families gang war and the burning of a weed farm in Flint County, both unrelated to the events seen in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Common Misinterpretation[]
Viewports, Remasters and Universes[]
Grand Theft Auto Online played from a top-down perspective in Tiny Racers.
It should be noted that "universe" (fictional worlds), "in-game camera viewport" (Top-down view, isometric view and 3D view) and image quality (HD) are completely different subjects – older titles being remastered to high definition does not retcon their established lore into the HD Universe.
In Grand Theft Auto, a universe consists of a collection of games that follow the same continuity as the game title that originally established the universe.
[]
Rockstar North, formerly known as DMA Design.
The universe shared between the 3D Universe GTA titles (2001–2006) and the Manhunt duology (2003–2007) was a creative decision from Rockstar North (est. 1984 as DMA Design), the video game developer based in Edinburgh, Scotland, and the creators of both the GTA and Manhunt franchises.
This decision explains the explicit connections, direct mentions to characters across both series, shared brands and references towards Scottish culture. As there are many contradictions when comparing to other similar open-world games from other different studios acquired by Rockstar Games (the publishing company), it is accepted the GTA–Manhunt universe belongs to Rockstar North titles only.
This is further evidenced through leftovers of Rockstar North's cancelled title Agent, which shared 1970s vehicle names and design with GTA IV and GTA V (one of which literally translates to "69"). Some of these vehicles would later debut in the GTA series after the project was cancelled.
Major Lore Differences[]
Across All Universes[]
- Liberty City in each new universe has a complete different pre-history.
- In the 2D Universe, Liberty City was established in 1603 by Belgian settlers after acquiring the land from Native Americans.
- The city's commercial island is Liberty Island (Manhattan), home to The Park (Central Park).
- In the 3D Universe, Liberty City was established in 1798, around 22 years after the Declaration of Independence in the United States.
- The city's commercial island is Staunton Island (Manhattan), home to the Belleville Park (Central Park).
- In the HD Universe, Liberty City was established as New Rotterdam in 1625, before changing the name to Liberty in 1664.
- The city's commercial island is Algonquin (Manhattan), home to the Middle Park (Central Park).
- In the 2D Universe, Liberty City was established in 1603 by Belgian settlers after acquiring the land from Native Americans.
- San Andreas in each new universe is a different type of location associated with California.
- In the 2D Universe, San Andreas is a spoof of real-life city of San Francisco.
- In the 3D Universe, San Andreas is a spoof of real-life state of California. Cities located in the state includes Los Santos (Los Angeles), San Fierro (San Francisco) and Las Venturas (Las Vegas).
- In the HD Universe, San Andreas is a spoof of real-life state of California. Cities located in the state includes Los Santos (Los Angeles) and San Fierro (San Francisco).
- A currently-unnamed separate rendition of the state of Nevada exists as implied by Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto Online. The only known city in the state is Las Venturas (Las Vegas).
- Vice City in each new universe has a complete different pre-history and/or demographics.
- In the 2D Universe, the ethnic neighborhoods of the city are Little Dominica and Little Bogota, parodies of real-life Little Haiti and Little Havana.
- In the 3D Universe, the ethnic neighborhoods of the city in Florida are Little Haiti and Little Havana, parodies of real-life Little Haiti and Little Havana.
- In the HD Universe, the ethnic neighborhoods of the city in Leonida are Little Haiti and Little Havana, parodies of real-life Little Haiti and Little Havana.
- The "Vice Beach" name is used as a spoof name for parodies of real-life Miami Beach across all three universes. Vice Beach appeared as a neighborhood (2D), resort island in Vice City, Florida (3D), and an incorporated city in Leonida (HD), the latter matching with its real-life counterpart.
- In the 3D Universe, Vice Beach is simply an a.k.a. name for Vice City Beach.
- Recreations of the state of New Jersey across all three universe includes New Guernsey (2D), Shoreside Vale (3D) as a borough of Liberty City, and Alderney (HD).
- "Florida" is recreated in each new universe as a different type of location.
- In the 2D Universe, "Florida" is seen on Chapter Selection menu as the city in which Vice City is located. However, the in-universe state name is left ambiguous.
- In the 3D Universe, Florida appears as a major setting as the city in which Vice City is located, causing an 3D Universe-exclusive "anomalia" in which real-life cities of Miami, Tampa and Reddick are mentioned by name.
- In the HD Universe, Florida's name was originally treated valid as the city in which Vice City is located. The real-life name was eventually ditched in favor of the introduction of the state of Leonida, a heavily satirical rendition of Florida in which the cities of Vice City and Vice Beach are located, retconning previous mentions of Florida in this specific universe only.
2D-to-3D Universe Reboots[]
- Exclusive to the 3D Universe, real-life U.S. Presidents are mentioned multiple times and play a minor background role, including Ronald Reagan and George Bush.
- El Burro is the only character from the 2D Universe to have been complete rewritten for 3D Universe, as a complete different character with different background.
- El Burro is sterotypical homosexual Mexican gangster killed in 1997, while the new El Burro is a heterosexual Hispanic bestiality porn actor turned gang leader alive as of 2001.
- The Liberty City-New Guernsey Italian Mafias "Vercotti and Sonetti Family" have never existed. In the 3D Universe, the Liberty City Mafia families include the Leone, Sindacco and Forelli Families, the latter being active as early as the 1960s.
- The in-universe recreation of New Jersey in the 3D Universe is treated as a borough of Liberty City, rather than a separate state.
- The Japanese Yakuza have never operated in San Andreas.
- Jamaicans gangs have never operated in Vice City.
- Uncle Fu's Crime Syndicate have never existed in San Andreas. In the 3D Universe, multiple Triad gangs have control of Chinatown, San Fierro.
- The Triads have operated in Liberty City since the Handover of Hong Kong in 1997.
3D-to-HD Universe Reboots[]
- Exclusive to the HD Universe, Vice City is located in the state of Leonida.
- Exclusive to the HD Universe, Las Venturas is located in an unidentified gambling-free Western U.S. state.
- Mount Chiliad is a different type of mountain, with different height and located in a different county of San Andreas.
- The Callahan Bridge and the neighborhoods of Harwood and Saint Mark's have never existed in Liberty City's history, making the incidents associated with each area non-canon.
- The Vinewood Sign is located on the top of Mount Haan in Vinewood Hills.
- Adjacent mansions including Madd Dogg's Crib have never existed, as seen in the vintage Vinewoodland portrait.
- Grove Street Families was a mere set of a bigger gang (The Families) rather than a full gang with multiple sets. The gang has vanished prior to 2013 and there are no known members.
- The Varrios Los Aztecas are long-time rivals of The Families.
- The gang is named after a street in the incorporated city of Davis, Los Santos County.
- The Liberty City Italian Mafias "Leone, Sindacco and Forelli Families" have never existed. In the HD Universe, the Five Liberty City Mafia families (Gambetti, Ancelotti, Messina, Lupisella, Pavano) are active as early as the 1920s according to LCPD Database.
- The Triads have operated in Liberty City since the 1980s.
- The Pole Position is an unseen adult lounge in Los Santos.
- Rubber Fist from the Manhunt series have never existed.
- Many brands from Manhunt 2 are rebranded as different ones, removing any mention of Rubber Fist and Cottonmouth Asylum (for example: H4PP1 and Hingmyralgan)
- TV-MK uses its early concept name "MK-TV" on the Pirate Music store.
References[]
- ↑ “5. Everyone is related to everyone else, except for people with red hair - FACT!”— Epsilon Program website (in-game & promotional)
- ↑ Illustration on Epsilon Program's promotional website
