My Ranking Of The Main GTAs

With the excitement of GTA VI coming next year, I thought I would give my ranking of the main GTA games from 3-5. I would include the first couple of games on the PS1 but honestly I think they have not aged great. If you do miss the top down GTA though, Chinatown wars on DS is a genuinely great game! I will now attempt now to make a list that I am sure will be controversial! This takes into account how the game play holds up today, and how iconic the game is. I will go from my least favourite, to my favourite. 

5. GTA III

There is no question that this revolutionised gaming. I remember first playing this on PS2 and my mind being blown that you can just go anywhere, and do anything. I honestly don't think there is a bad GTA game at all, this game is just the oldest and therefore has aged the worst. I recently played through it and actually was surprised at how much fun I was having. But I found the game very dark (a lot of the time I struggled to see), the shooting difficult, and the missions very samey. Most of the time in this game you are either chasing another car and ramming into it; or trying to escape someone who is chasing you and ramming into you. Honestly if you have never played it, it is worth playing, but I cannot say that it is anywhere near as good as the other games on this list.

4. GTA IV

GTA IV gets a bad rep. This is the one I played through most recently and I was so pleasantly surprised. A lot of people trash talk this game and say it is the worst GTA, but I found myself having so much fun with it, and I had forgotten how many features it introduced. The use of the mobile phone and internet cafes in the game, really makes the world feel alive so much more than any of the previous ones. Also the choices you are able to make I found really interesting. Several points in the game you get the choice to kill people or let them free and it actually has consequences. Also there was a point where I was on my way to a date with a girl (BTW the dating sim aspect of this game is so much fun) and I got a call from my cousin Roman saying he was in trouble. I went on the date instead of going to save him, because I figured I would just be able to go after the date, then I got an angry phone call from him asking why I didn't help him. It just made the world feel alive, like things are happening outside of your view. There is so much to do outside of the main game as well. There are random encounters on the streets that lead to fun mini missions, there is of course the vast amount of activities you can do with Niko's friends and there is even multiplayer! Niko is also more likable than I remember, I felt genuinely invested in his story and he is a witty, observant protagonist. The main problems I have with GTA IV is the cover based shooting is a little repetitive and, much like GTA III, the lighting is a little dark. Apart from that though I absolutely would recommend this game if you haven't played a GTA before. Also the expansion packs for this game are great too!

3. GTA V

Now I will start this by saying I understand that this game is an absolute masterpiece of a game that was hugely ahead of its time, and has remained relevant for more than 10 years because of it's online content. But I have always struggled to engage with the story and characters, and was one of the people that would've preferred one protagonist as opposed to three. I think my main issue is that I didn't fully love any of the three characters. Trevor is fun, sure, but a little too fun for me to really engage with his story. Also I am a little spoiled for choice with GTA V, there is so much to do that I get decision paralysis. You know when you are scrolling Netflix for 2 hours trying to pick a movie and then end up just watching The Dark Knight for the 7000th time? That's how GTA V feels for me. This sounds like I'm very negative on the game, I'm not, I actually love it. I think the map is super impressive, there is so much detail and it is one of the cornerstones of gaming. I also think it is one of the funniest games ever made and has some iconic moments in it! I just like a more streamlined game personally.

2. GTA: San Andreas

I love this game. It is insane in all the best ways. They went wacky with this GTA game and it paid off. The map is one of the best maps in video game history. The fact that you can be walking down a Las Vegas style strip one moment and then in the middle of a forest the next is just the coolest thing ever. I also loved CJ as a character and really connected with his story. The customisation was on point in this game! You could get muscular, fat, skinny. You could change your hairstyle, your clothes and even cover yourself in tattoos. The fact that you have to eat did get a little irritating, especially when you flip your car in the middle of nowhere and have to walk to the nearest motorway whilst he nearly starves to death, but apart from that, San Andreas is an almost flawless game. I love the radio stations on this game, and it has some of the most iconic mission, such as 'Mad Doggs Rhymes' and 'Wrong Side Of The Tracks'. San Andreas still holds up today, so if you haven't played it, play it! And if you have played it but it ways years ago, play it again!

1. GTA: Vice City

This game goes down as one of my all time favourite games. I honestly cannot wait for GTA VI Specifically because of how much I love Vice City. The Miami, 80's setting is just such an iconic setting and I know every inch of the map. I love the story of Vice City, especially Lance, he is such a fun character. Buying the different businesses, like the Movie studios and the Kaufman Cabs, and completing those missions to become a business tycoon was so satisfying. The vehicles in Vice City are iconic, the soundtrack is flawless and it is just the right length for a game. This is perhaps the only game I have ever 100% completed and then straight away just restarted from the beginning. There are too many iconic missions to list but a couple of favourites of mine are 'G-Spotlight' and 'Cop Land'. Also Love Fist is a legitimately great band and it is a crime we don't have more Scottish metal! Finally lets talk about the cheats in this game! Putting in the flying cars cheat, then getting a tank, and firing backwards whilst driving was the most fun ever! I am probably going to play through this game at least once every couple of years for the rest of my life, in fact typing this is making me want to play it right now!

What are your rankings of the GTA games? Also what do you want to see in GTA VI? Add them to the comments below!

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