The release of GTA 6 is getting closer and closer, and although the latest news is not too good regarding its release date, fans of the saga are eagerly waiting to see what surprises Rockstar will bring with this new Grand Theft Auto.
According to the multiple leaks that have been revealed over the months, we know that the story will take place in Vice City -Rockstar’s version of Miami-, that the main characters will be two brothers -a boy and a girl- and that the game will come with an innovative online mode that will improve on GTA V.
However, although Grand Theft Auto has been a saga that has improved over the years and has been perfecting its formula, we can not say that it is a regular franchise. Each game has had its strong points, and each time they have been more and more, but they have also suffered from some problems that have had to be solved in the following titles.
After more than a decade since the release of GTA 5, the public has very high expectations for Grand Theft Auto 6. So how will they manage to make this title the best in the entire franchise?
Of course, the most important thing is that they learn from their weaknesses and optimize their strengths. Therefore, here is a tour through the different games of the saga and how Rockstar has been learning to improve in each game. That will be the key to find the definitive GTA.
Grand Theft Auto – The Origin of Everything
The first GTA was something very different from what we understand today as a game of the franchise. Its zenithal view gave a unique perspective of the city, but it leaves Rockstar’s main idea in evidence; that it was going to be a racing game. Although its development changed a lot about how this installment ended up being, there was still a lot to learn.
The best of GTA: the conception of the whole saga. Its sandbox style with missions to complete with freedom and areas that are unlocked gave rise to dozens of subsequent video games.
The worst thing about GTA: the cities are small and with few possibilities. You can tell that they were still testing everything that could become the saga.
Grand Theft Auto: London 1969 – Spin-off Pioneers
Before getting down to work with GTA 2 -which arrived only a year after the original, mind you-, Rockstar launched an expansion of its main game entitled Grand Theft Auto: London 1969. As the developers, Rockstar North, are from the UK, it made sense to move the game’s action to London, and it certainly turned out to be a curious experiment… although it stayed there.
The best of GTA: London 1969: this was the only time GTA moved to the UK, and exploring London during the 1960s is a delight for the amount of detail and satire it leaves behind.
The worst thing about GTA: London 1969: it’s basically the same game as the previous one, but in another place. It doesn’t add anything, neither for good nor for bad.
Grand Theft Auto 2 – Rockstar Unlimited
With GTA 2, the developers wanted the game to be better, bigger, with more mechanics and better graphics. And well, they achieved all that, but to achieve it they did something that has never been repeated in the saga: set the game in a city called Anywhere, which resembled a futuristic and dystopian version of New York City. That is why, although it was groundbreaking at the time, looking back it jumps a bit from what we have in mind that is a Grand Theft Auto.
The best thing about GTA 2: the game improved in all aspects to the first one. Although it did not become a great revolution, it perfected the formula of the moment and made everything much bigger.
The worst thing about GTA 2: The setting is too convoluted and the city is not as cozy as in the other GTA games, making the open world pale a little.
Grand Theft Auto 3 – The Game That Changed the Industry
The third title in the franchise was the one that changed everything for Rockstar. It turned a medium-sized game into a Triple A game with disproportionate sales, and crowned the arrival of videogames in the 21st century just a month after the Twin Towers fell. It was a leap in graphics -we finally had a third-person view-, possibilities and gameplay. And today it can still be played without us missing almost anything.
The best thing about GTA 3: practically everything. Everything was much bigger, with a huge amount of content and a spectacular open world. It laid the foundations for sandboxes as we know them today.
The worst thing about GTA 3: there was still much to do. The gameplay is very improvable and the story is very basic. In addition, the songs of their radio stations leave much to be desired.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – De viaje a Miami
Barely a year after GTA III, Rockstar released the wonderful Vice City, a title similar to the previous one but in which it took the Scarface movie as a base to introduce Tommy, a fully-fledged Tony Montana. With the action set in a kind of Miami -which apparently will return in GTA 6-, the game quickly became one of the most remembered.
The best thing about GTA: Vice City: beyond the setting, the game is basically the same as the third one but with some significant improvements. Among them, what stands out the most is the inclusion of dozens of new vehicles -even airplanes and helicopters- that you could pilot.
The worst thing about GTA: Vice City: basically the same as in the previous one, but this one highlighted its detestable combat system, which has cost them many games to improve.
Grand Theft Auto: Advance – When GTA met Nintendo
When Nintendo launched Game Boy Advance, many thought the console would be a technological revolution. And, well, it wasn’t bad, but it was far from being able to support a franchise like GTA. Still, Rockstar gave it a try with Grand Theft Auto: Advance, and something rather curious came out of it.
The best thing about GTA: Advance: the game recovered the essence of the first ones, and its story was a prequel to GTA III. In broad strokes, not so bad.
The worst thing about GTA: Advance: it feels like the smallest, most humble and unadventurous game in the series. It hasn’t aged too well.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – A Before and After in the Saga
GTA: San Andreas was the game that reached the furthest in its time, impacting the whole world and turning Grand Theft Auto into a recognized saga. Its world set in a version of Los Angeles and its story starring CJ has remained in the memory of players.
The best thing about GTA: San Andreas: it was a huge technical revolution. Even being from PS2, in San Andreas you could explore a whole state of the USA. And, although it had many empty areas, the possibilities were endless.
The worst thing about GTA: San Andreas: at times it looked like a less attractive world than Vice City or Liberty City. Too faithful to the real California.
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City & Vice City Stories – The best of GTA in your pocket
The test of bringing GTA to portable consoles did not work very well with GTA: Advance. However, with PSP the possibilities were much greater, and Rockstar took full advantage of them with two installments: Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories. Despite being reduced versions of their usual worlds, they could not be missing in any PSP of the time.
The best thing about GTA: Liberty City & Vice City Stories: at a time when handheld consoles had very few resources, these games were a great revolution. Putting all the action of GTA III and Vice City on PSP was crazy, and even today they are still very enjoyable games.
The worst thing about GTA: Liberty City & Vice City Stories: compared to the main games, they fall well below what GTA was already back then.
Grand Theft Auto 4 – Niko Bellic conquers the city
One of the biggest problems Grand Theft Auto had was that, although their games were memorable, their stories were not so memorable. That was completely changed with GTA IV; in addition to making a significant leap in graphic quality when it came to PS3 and Xbox 360, Liberty City had a thrilling story starring the great Niko Bellic.
The best thing about GTA 4: it was a brutal leap of generation, and not only in graphics. It improved gameplay, mechanics, possibilities and the world to explore.
Worst thing about GTA 4: many of the crazy elements like jetpacks or parachutes were not in the original game, although it was later fixed in the DLCs.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars – Another way to understand GTA
As a prequel to GTA IV, Rockstar released Chinatown Wars, an original Nintendo DS game that brought back the top-down view and told an interesting story of drug trafficking. Although they learned their lesson from GTA: Advance, it didn’t go much further.
The best thing about GTA: Chinatown Wars: the story of the game is really interesting, and the fact of being able to use Liberty City as a place to move drugs up and down ends up being addictive.
The worst thing about GTA: Chinatown Wars: its release on DS was quite accidental; it wasn’t fully polished and it showed. However, it was quite optimized in its later versions.
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City – DLCs in the Spirit of Great Games
GTA IV brought with it two DLCs that are remembered as the best in the history of video games -with the permission of The Witcher 3: Blood & Wine-. The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony arrived together in Episodes From Liberty City, and brought the game back into fashion a year later.
Best of GTA: Episodes From Liberty City: although GTA 4 was a somewhat dark game, these two expansions brought a lot of light, fun and madness to Liberty City, reminding us what Grand Theft Auto was all about.
The worst thing about GTA: Episodes From Liberty City: The Ballad of Gay Tony far surpasses The Lost and Damned, especially in terms of tone and fun.
GTA 5 and GTA Online – Los Santos takes over Rockstar
GTA V is one of the biggest milestones in the video game industry. It is the best-selling game in history, second only to Minecraft, and has become such a phenomenon that, a decade after its release, it continues to be played, updated and talked about. There is little more to say about what has been, for years, Rockstar’s definitive game.
The best of GTA 5: the online mode of GTA forever changed the perspective of the saga. Although GTA V was already a success, it was through its good work in the online mode that conquered homes around the globe. At last you could experience GTA together and in all its possible dimension.
The worst thing about GTA 5: but the online mode has also caused them not to release anything else from GTA for more than ten years, and it’s a shame that Rockstar hasn’t experimented with more titles during this time. We’ll see if this changes with the sixth installment.
