The silent protagonist of Grand Theft Auto III is due to return soon, as the game is being remastered as part of the Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - Definitive Edition. The name of GTA 3's playable character is never spoken in-game, nor is it used to refer to him in any of the menus, but his name has been revealed in another entry of the Grand Theft Auto series - one which is also included in the GTA Trilogy collection.
The protagonists of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and San Andreas had distinct personalities of their own, which was helped by them being voiced, with Ray Liotta voicing Tommy Vercetti, and Young Maylay voicing CJ. The protagonist of Grand Theft Auto 3 never spoke during the game, which might have been a good thing. What made GTA 3 so mind-blowing at launch was how much of an open world it had and how the player could explore the city at their leisure. The player was free to project whatever personality they wanted onto their avatar of destruction as they caused havoc on the streets of Liberty City, and like with Half-Life's Gordon Freeman silence made this easier to do.
Fans will soon have the chance to return to the original version of Liberty City as the silent protagonist, as a remastered version of GTA 3 is being released on November 11. This time, however, players already know Grand Theft Auto 3's playable character's name, since it was revealed all the way back in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
GTA 3's Main Character's Name Is Claude Speed
The protagonist of GTA 3 is named Claude. This was first revealed during his cameo in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas by Catalina (his girlfriend who later betrays him during the intro of GTA 3) who reveals they are dating after breaking up with CJ. The name Claude has since been used in official Grand Theft Auto merchandise and has been used by Rockstar in an official capacity during Q&A segments on the official Rockstar Games website. Grand Theft Auto 3's Claude is also one of the potential parents players can choose in the character creation mode in Grand Theft Auto Online.
The fate of Claude after the events of GTA 3 is uncertain, but it's unlikely that he will return to the series in any major way. The Grand Theft Auto franchise has moved on, and now mainly focuses on stories that revolve around the twisted personalities of each GTA game's leads. Claude's role as the silent playable character in Grand Theft Auto 3 served its purpose during the era when the series first made the jump to 3D. If anything, his legacy can be seen in the silent characters in Grand Theft Auto Online, who continue to wreak havoc in untold numbers.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - Definitive Edition will be available for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC on November 11, 2021, and it will launch on iOS and Android in H1 2022.