It has been a long time since fans have gotten new Grand Theft Auto material, and with the series' newest release, that still hasn't changed. Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - Definitive Edition is made up of three old games; Grand Theft Auto III, GTA: Vice City, and GTA: San Andreas. And though the series' developer Rockstar is known for advancing the gaming industry forward with each of their games, that isn't the case here.
It wasn't Rockstar who developed the game, but Grove Street Games, a company that mostly ports games to mobile platforms, and fans aren't very satisfied with the result. Though some gamers could have set their expectations a little lower, there are some glaring problems with the release, and fans have had more fun making memes of the game than playing it.
The Character Models
One of the most jarring parts of the new remastered trilogy when fans first boot up the game is the physique of the characters. They all look almost warped, with a wide-body but small head and normal-sized arms.
This fan hilariously edited an image of Dwayne Johnson to look like the San Andreas characters, and it's funny because of how huge Johnson's arms are in real life. And it's fairly appropriate that the fan used the former wrestler as an example, as he also starred in a disaster movie called San Andreas.
The 2010 Bottle
So much of the game has been criticized, whether it's the character models or the lack of fog, which robs the world of its size. But it seems there are errors in even the simplest of things, such as bottles of wine. Nothing gets past eagle-eyed GTA fans.
In the San Andreas remaster, it features a bottle of wine named Rooster sitting on a shelf in a bar, and it has the year 2010 printed on it. But given that the game is based in 1992, the bar owner must be some kind of time-traveler. Or what's more likely is that Grove Street Games mistranscribed it from the original version, which seems to have happened many times in the new trilogy remaster.
Rockstar's Milking It
Big Smoke is one of the reasons why San Andreas should have been remastered, as he's one of the most interesting characters. Between his mystery Cluckin' Bell order and the way he betrays CJ, Big Smoke is endlessly entertaining. But one fan uses the character's best quote as a way to call out Rockster for milking the series.
When Big Smoke is dying, he admits to CJ, "I got caught up in the money, the power," and maybe that's something Rockstar should think about. They are the gold standard of video game developers, and though they didn't develop the remastered trilogy, they allowed Grove Street Games to massacre the games for a buck.
Rockster Has Become Who They Were Parodying
In Grand Theft Auto V, a mission saw the player having to kill Jay Norris, the founder of Life Invader, which is the in-game parody of Facebook. Needless to say, Rockster didn't exactly seem like the biggest fan of the social network, and that was before the controversial Cambridge Analytica scandal.
But now, Rockstar is actively working with Zuckerberg to develop a virtual reality version of San Andreas for the Metaverse, and this fan matched the screenshot of Norris's death with the clip of Zuckerberg making the announcement. Hopefully, the developer learns from the failure of the remastered trilogy and puts more care and attention into the VR version.
Same Vibes
It isn't just the characters' physiques that have been criticized to no end, but the renderings of the characters even look far worse than the original version. One player has compared the two characters to the design of the Simpsons characters in another classic game, The Simpsons: Hit & Run.
It's embarrassing for Grove Street Games that the San Andreas remaster has very similar graphics to The Simpsons: Hit & Run, a video game that was released even before the GTA game. It almost looks as if the graphics are lagging and the textures are still trying to catch up with the cut scene, not to mention that his goatee looks like stick-on facial hair.
The Infamous Clucking Bell Menu
Big Smoke is a much-talked-about part of the Definitive Edition, at least when it comes to memes, that is. Being one of the best characters introduced after GTA III, some people have tried to create Big's Smoke's infamous Cluckin' Bell order in real life. The gangster's order is "two number 9s, a number 9 large, a number 6 with extra dip, a number 7, two number 45s, one with cheese, and a large soda," but that's as much information that fans have.
This meme focuses on the fact that with the updated graphics on the remaster, fans will finally be able to read the restaurant's menu and find out what that exact order is. It even argues that this reveal is more important than an online mode.
GTA V Definitive Edition
With the development of Rockstar games being so secretive, one fan jokes that the company is putting all of its efforts into remasters. They have created a graphic that advertises a definitive edition of Grand Theft Auto V, which will be released 60 years from now.
Ironically, as the 2013 game has been released on three different generations of consoles at this point, it essentially has already been remastered twice. The fan also mentions that GTA VI will never be released, and fans are starting to wonder if the long-rumored game was ever even been in development in the first place.
The Joker Loves It
At the end of the day, San Andreas has the best GTA story, and it was way ahead of its time when it was first released back in 2004. Though the Definitive Edition is riddled with glitches and bad graphics, it is still Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and it's still loads of classic Rockstar sandbox fun.
To put across this very point, a fan uses the popular meme of Joker's Arthur Fleck telling Murray that he shouldn't have to pretend to dislike something to fit in. In fairness, gamers may have gone a little hard on the release, as it is still three full games with endless amounts of replayability.
The 20-Year-Old New Game
The wait for GTA 6 amongst the series' fanbase is reaching boiling point, and it's getting so intense that the tension could be cut with a knife. This fan shares the same feelings as everyone else, as they point out that the newest entry in the series is still 20 years old.
Though San Andreas isn't quite 20 yet, as it was released in 2004, it's close enough. However, the Definitive Edition also includes Grand Theft Auto III, which has hit 20. And it's even tougher to stomach, as it's the first new material in over eight years.