Every Major Grand Theft Auto Game, Ranked

The Grand Theft Auto series has become one of the most important in gaming. Since GTA 3 changed the game with its open-world design, developer Rockstar has consistently outdone itself with new entries. There just aren’t many other franchises that can claim as much cultural cache as Grand Theft Auto.

Simply put, a new GTA is an event that the entire industry stops in its tracks for. While every game in the series is important, we’ve put together our ranking for the best GTA games of all time.Before diving in, it’s important to note that, except for GTA: Chinatown Wars, we aren’t including the spin-off games.



While Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories are solid games, we wanted to stick with the mainline series as much as possible. With that added caveat, here are our favorite Grand Theft Auto games.8) Grand Theft Auto 2GTA 2 is an intriguing game in Rockstar’s long-running franchise because it’s set in a retrofuturistic city called “Anywhere City.

” That makes it the only game in the series that doesn’t take place in the modern day or the past, giving Rockstar’s second effort a unique feeling. That said, GTA 2 didn’t do much to improve what fans saw in the original Grand Theft Auto, making it the weakest entry in the universe.7) Grand Theft AutoThe original GTA is completely different from what fans are used to.

The top-down crime game focused on evading the police and taking out pedestrians with your car. That said, we have to give some respect to the game that started it all. Without this first, relatively simple game, we never would have seen Rockstar completely change the game a few years later.

6) Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown WarsChinatown Wars was something of a surprise when it was announced, but Rockstar did a commendable job porting the open-world experience to portable systems, starting with the Nintendo DS. Chinatown Wars used cel-shaded graphics to make gameplay pop on a smaller screen and introduced a compelling drug-dealing mini-game that quickly hooked players.RELATED: 8 Vice City Characters Who Should Appear in GTA 6Rockstar should also be praised for its dedication to introducing gameplay elements exclusive to the DS, using the handheld’s touchscreen and microphone in innovative ways.

The only thing keeping Chinatown Wars from moving higher on this list is its limited scope. That’s to be expected from a portable game, but it’s impossible to ignore for a series that has consistently set the industry standard since 2001.5) Grand Theft Auto IVSome are going to take offense at Grand Theft Auto IV being so low, but it’s still a remarkable game.

The first game in GTA’s HD Universe features a compelling protagonist in Niko Bellic. Plus, the ragdoll physics led to hours of open-world entertainment.Where it falls for us largely comes down to personal preference.

Every mainline Grand Theft Auto game is incredible, but GTA IV‘s Liberty City was our least favorite to explore. Again, that doesn’t mean it’s bad; we just liked the other cities (or versions of Liberty City) a little more. And, outside of Niko, most of GTA IV‘s characters pale in comparison to their counterparts in other games.

Other than Brucie, of course!4) Grand Theft Auto 3On balance, GTA IV is a better video game than GTA 3. Its version of Liberty City feels more alive, and the gameplay has been given a massive boost. However, we want to reward GTA 3 for how much it did for video games.

Simply put, there might not be a more important game in video game history than Grand Theft Auto 3. It completely changed the landscape of the medium and spawned countless knockoffs.Even without the historical importance, GTA 3 is a phenomenal game.

Twenty years later, we still know this city like the back of our hand. Whether playing through the engrossing, mafia-themed campaign or murdering civilians in the open world, GTA 3 represents open-world action-adventure gameplay at its best.3) Grand Theft Auto: San AndreasWhen the San Andreas map was revealed, our jaws hit the ground.

For the first time, Rockstar was taking us beyond a single city and giving us a massive landmass full of varied environments to explore.The story featured some of the best characters in the franchise to date, especially its villains. Samuel L.

Jackson’s Frank Tenpenny steals the show, but Big Smoke, Ryder, and several others are compellingly fun to hate. Add in the customization system that lets you take CJ to the gym to get buff or the Cluckin Bell to put several extra pounds on your gut and the dynamic gang wars system, and you have a game bursting at the seams with content. Every modern GTA game is great, but San Andreas is where we start getting into “masterpiece” territory.

2) Grand Theft Auto VThere aren’t many games that are financially more successful than GTA V, and it’s for good reason. Rockstar took things to another level by introducing three different protagonists, allowing them to tell a sprawling, interconnected story about a criminal crew coming together for pulse-pounding heists.And while those heists might be the peak of missions in GTA so far, everything else is just as good.

Grand Theft Auto has always been packed with side content, but GTA V was an explosion of things to do. Technically, GTA V is a marvel, with limited loading screens despite the massive open world and a jaw-dropping lighting system.On top of all that, GTA V introduced the world to GTA Online, which has quickly become one of the most popular games on the market.

Even in 2025, it remains one of the most profitable games in any publisher’s catalog.1) Grand Theft Auto: Vice CityIn terms of scope, GTA V and San Andreas blow Vice City out of the water. Those games took the franchise to higher heights from a technical standpoint as well.

So why do we have Vice City at the top of our list? Vibes.The neon-soaked streets of Vice City perfectly encapsulate the 1980s, and the Scarface-inspired story of Tommy Vercetti is a bombastic exploration of Miami culture. Rockstar’s decision to leave the drab and dreary Liberty City for the sun-soaked beaches of Vice City was a massive change of pace, but ended up being the ideal way to follow up on one of the most important games ever.

Vice City‘s voice cast is also stellar, boasting performances from Ray Liotta, Tom Sizemore, William Fichtner, Burt Reynolds, and a cadre of top Hollywood actors. Heck, they even brought in Miami Vice star Philip Michael Thomas to voice Lance Vance, your partner turned enemy.Future games have undoubtedly raised the bar in the years since, but nothing has topped Vice City for a world we just wanted to live in.

From the first time we hopped on a PCJ 600 and cruised down the beach, we were hooked. And we can’t wait to finally go back to Vice City when GTA 6 launches in 2026.The post Every Major Grand Theft Auto Game, Ranked appeared first on ComicBook.

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