Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series is one of gaming’s most iconic franchises with a timeline that stretches over 40 years. From Liberty City to Los Santos, there have been 15 titles in the series that sold over 150 million units.
The main games in the GTA series, Grand Theft Autos 1-5, are set in three vastly different eras. On top of that, there's ten spinoff titles in various points along the Grand Theft Auto timeline that add to the story arc started in the main games.
The series has come a long way since the original Grand Theft Auto launched in 1997 in Europe, rising from the ashes of a scrapped project called Race n' Chase. Players were able to play as cops or criminals, and complete various missions. The idea was almost abandoned entirely before becoming the Grand Theft Auto that was eventually released.
2D Era - Grand Theft Autos I - II
Grand Theft Auto was released in October of ’97 and had two sequels, called London 1969 and London 1961, that were released in 1999. These games featured a top-down 2D view and allowed players to engage in criminal missions much like the titles that would come after it. Grand Theft Auto II followed in its footsteps, and solidified the series as a mix between driving, shooting, and various criminal activity.
GTA II was a swift follow-up after the two London expansion packs were released, coming out in late 1999. This edition was set in an unspecified town called Anywhere, USA, a futuristic town in an unknown time. Crime is the main attraction again, as players are tasked with stealing cars, gunning down police, and rising in rank among various criminal syndicates.
Grand Theft Auto II introduced a few significant features to the GTA series, including a health meter, save points within levels, and various side missions, such as big rig hauling and driving a taxi cab. It was also the debut for the iconic GTA garage, a location where players could take their stolen autos to have expensive upgrades installed, despite blowing them up minutes later.
GTA II had a top-down gameplay view and the characters were 2D sprites. There were many variations of cars and guns for players to cause mayhem with. The map consisted of the one city, and once players had finished the missions in one area, another was opened. The game even featured a live-action intro scene filmed by Rockstar Games, which saw criminal Claude Speed before he was assassinated by a crime syndicate. The game had a few shortfalls, chief among them being a linear progression system that later GTA titles have moved away from.
3D Era - Grand Theft Autos III - San Andreas
GTA III (2001) was the turning point in the series. It moved away from the top-down view from the first two major Grand Theft Auto titles, and moved into its own 3D, third-person world. The storyline was a highlight of the game, with much more depth than the previous entries in the series. Despite this, Grand Theft Auto III easily allowed players to go off the rails and take missions from multiple people at their own discretion, letting them progress through the story at their own pace.
A minimap was added to Grand Theft Auto III, along with better interchange between driving and on-foot mechanics. The game finally gave players endearing characters weaved into a tale that was as exciting as the action. Main character Claude Speed is a nobody in the criminal world, and GTA III details his rise to prominence, his triumph over Salvatore Leone, the Don of Liberty City, and the eventual destruction of his antagonist Catalina. The game became a classic.
All five titles that were released between GTA III and IV were set as prequels to the events in GTA III, adding onto the massive story arc. GTA: Vice City (2002) was the first addition to the GTA III era timeline, introducing Tommy Vercetti and Vice City, Florida. GTA: San Andreas came out in 2004, and is set after Vice City (but before GTA III). San Andreas is one of the largest open-world games ever, and earned rave reviews. According to the majority of critics, it is the best game in the series. Liberty City Stories was released in 2005, and bridged the gap between San Andreas and Liberty City, the setting of GTA III.
GTA: Vice City Stories (2006) is the final game released in the 3D universe. It was originally intended as a PSP exclusive, but was so successful that it received ports for PS2 and Ps3 as well. It's set as a prequel to Vice City, making it the earliest in the 3D timeline. GTA Advance, a Game Boy Advance exclusive, was not as good, and didn't make it to consoles. It's set as the last on the timeline in the 3D universe.
HD Era - Grand Theft Autos IV - V
The final era of GTA starts with the release of GTA IV in 2008. This title moved the series into the HD universe, with even more diversity between guns, cars, and missions. The two additions, The Lost and the Damned (2009) and The Ballad of Gay Tony (2009), expand the story started in GTA IV. They were released as DLC, and intertwine with each other and the main game's storyline. There was also a mobile game released in 2009 called GTA Chinatown Wars that featured top-down graphics and a new story, separate from other GTA stories in a scaled-down Liberty City.
Finally, the most recent game was released in 2013. GTA V has taken a proud franchise and made it unforgettable. Its trademark mix of mischief and mayhem is incredibly fun, and its edgy sense of humor gave the game an incredible replayability. Then, when players got tired of GTA’s classic single player mode, publisher Rockstar Games added new online features and constant updates that keep players interested in the game even seven years after its release. The success of moving a single player game franchise to an online multiplayer environment has not been replicated in any game of this scale.
The iconic franchise had a slow start, with the original two games being largely forgettable. GTA III changed everything, and made the series worth playing over and over with its huge universe. While GTA IV improved on the format, GTA V turned the series into one of the most played games of all time. While it's uncertain when Grand Theft Auto 6 will release, the Grand Theft Auto series as a whole has already had a long and storied history.