Grand Theft Auto

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Logo since Grand Theft Auto III (2001)

Grand Theft Auto is a series of action-adventure games created by David Jones and Mike Dailly.[1] Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan and Sam Houser, Leslie Benzies and Aaron Garbut. It is primarily developed by British development house Rockstar North (formerly DMA Design), and published by its American parent company, Rockstar Games. The name of the series references the term "grand theft auto", used in the United States for motor vehicle theft.

Gameplay focuses on an open world where the player can complete missions to progress an overall story, as well as engage in various side activities. Most of the gameplay revolves around driving and shooting, with occasional role-playing and stealth elements. The series also has elements of the earlier beat 'em up games from the 16-bit era. The games in the Grand Theft Auto series are set in fictional locales modelled after real-life cities, at various points in time from the early 1960s to the 2010s. The original game's map encompassed three cities—Liberty City (based on New York City), San Andreas (based on San Francisco),[a] and Vice City (based on Miami)—but later titles tend to focus on a single setting; usually one of the original three locales, albeit remodelled and significantly expanded. The series centres on different protagonists who attempt to rise through the ranks of the criminal underworld, although their motives for doing so vary in each title. The antagonists are commonly characters who have betrayed the protagonist or their organisation, or characters who have the most impact impeding the protagonist's progress. Several film and music veterans have voiced characters in the games, including Ray Liotta, Dennis Hopper, Samuel L. Jackson, William Fichtner, James Woods, Debbie Harry, Axl Rose and Peter Fonda.[2]

DMA Design began the series in 1997, with the release of the Grand Theft Auto. As of 2020, the series consists of seven standalone titles and four expansion packs. The third main title, Grand Theft Auto III, released in 2001, is considered a landmark game, as it brought the series to a three-dimensional (3D) setting and more immersive experience. Subsequent titles have followed and built upon the concept established in Grand Theft Auto III, and received significant acclaim. They have influenced other open-world action games, and led to the label Grand Theft Auto clone on similar titles.

The series has been critically acclaimed, with all the main 3D entries in the franchise frequently ranked among the greatest and best-selling video games;[3] it has shipped more than 385 million units, making it one of the best-selling video game franchise. In 2006, Grand Theft Auto was featured in a list of British design icons in the Great British Design Quest organised by the BBC and the Design Museum.[4] In 2013, The Telegraph ranked Grand Theft Auto among Britain's most successful exports.[5] The series has also been controversial for its adult nature and violent themes.

List of titles
Title Developer Platforms First released
Grand Theft Auto DMA Design, Tarantula Studios DOS, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation, Game Boy Color October 1997
Grand Theft Auto: London, 1969 DMA Design, Tarantula Studios, Rockstar Canada, Runecraft DOS, PlayStation, Microsoft Windows April 29, 1999
Grand Theft Auto: London, 1961 DMA Design, Tarantula Studios, Rockstar Canada, Runecraft Microsoft Windows June 1, 1999
Grand Theft Auto 2 DMA Design, Tarantula Studios Dreamcast, Game Boy Color, PlayStation, Microsoft Windows October 22, 1999
Grand Theft Auto III DMA Design PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, Xbox October 22, 2001
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Rockstar North PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, Xbox October 27, 2002
Grand Theft Auto Advance Digital Eclipse Game Boy Advance October 25, 2004
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Rockstar North PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, Xbox, Android, iOS October 26, 2004
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories Rockstar North, Rockstar Leeds PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2, Android, iOS October 25, 2005
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories Rockstar North, Rockstar Leeds PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2 October 31, 2006
Grand Theft Auto IV Rockstar North PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows April 29, 2008
Grand Theft Auto: The Lost and Damned Rockstar North PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows February 17, 2009 (Xbox 360)
April 13, 2010 (PlayStation 3 and Windows)
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Rockstar North Nintendo DS, PSP, Android, iOS March 17, 2009 (Nintendo DS)
October 20, 2009 (PSP)
January 17, 2010 (iOS)
December 18, 2014 (Android)
Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony Rockstar North PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows October 29, 2009 (Xbox 360)
April 13, 2010 (PlayStation 3 and Windows)
Grand Theft Auto V Rockstar North PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, PlayStation 5, Microsoft Windows September 17, 2013
Grand Theft Auto Online Rockstar North PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, PlayStation 5, Microsoft Windows October 1, 2013
Grand Theft Auto VI TBA PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S[6] TBA

There has been a lot of controversy about these games. Many people do not like how the player can murder random people, and sleep with prostitutes. Because of this, all 3D GTA games have been rated Mature so far.

See also[change | change source]

Notes[change | change source]

  1. In later games, San Andreas is depicted as a state, mostly based on California and Nevada, while a new city based on San Francisco, San Fierro, is instead featured. Two additional cities, Los Santos (based on Los Angeles) and Las Venturas (based on Las Vegas) also exist in the state of San Andreas.

References[change | change source]

  1. "GTA: "Max Clifford made it all happen"". GamesIndustry.biz. 22 October 2012. Archived from the original on 2 June 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2013.
  2. Orland, Kyle (14 September 2011). "Grand Theft Auto IV Passes 22M Shipped, Franchise Above 114M". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 12 September 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  3. "The 50 best video games of the 21st century". The Guardian. 19 September 2019. Archived from the original on 22 September 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  4. "Long list unveiled for national vote on public's favourite example of Great British Design". BBC. 18 November 2016. Archived from the original on 19 July 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  5. "GTA 5: a Great British export". The Telegraph. 17 September 2015. Archived from the original on 13 April 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  6. "Rockstar Games Announces Grand Theft Auto VI, Coming 2025". Take-Two Interactive. Retrieved January 18, 2024.

Other websites[change | change source]