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[IbizaPocholo]

Grand Theft Auto Will Celebrate Its 25th Anniversary This Month

Grand Theft Auto will turn a quarter of a century old later this month, with the franchise going down as one of the most successful in gaming.

gamerant.com

The Grand Theft Auto games will officially turn 25 this month, with the maiden release having come out in 1997.

Over the years, Rockstar's flagship series has gone down as one of the most successful franchises in all of gaming, selling hundreds of millions of copies over the years. GTA 5, which came out in 2013 and is still being played to this day, is not only one of the highest-grossing releases of all time, but has won multiple awards. For many, the series is a staple of gaming, and it only seems to be getting more and more popular as time moves on, with fans anticipating the next installment.

As mentioned above, the Grand Theft Auto games began in the heady days of 1997, November 28 to be exact. Originally 2D and much more cartoon-y than the 3D releases that would eventually follow, the first game was marred by media controversy for its supposed glorification of crime and violence. What was interesting about the controversy was that it was Rockstar itself, then called DMA Design, that got the ball rolling by having stories about the upcoming game printed in newspapers, thereby drumming up interest and eventually sales. Of course, GTA has always been contested by some, but it evidently hasn't stopped the franchise and its developer from rocketing to the top.

 

[Represent.]

Drop that trailer.

 

[MidGenRefresh]

I remember only having that timed demo and replaying it over and over and over and over again.

 

[Tomi]

Gta 6 here we go!!!

 

[eastcoastkody]

i was aware of the early playstation games. Like the london one. But wasn't interested.

I do however remember the hype leading up to the release of GTA 3. This was back when we were still relying on magazine articles. Idk what magazine i read. GamePro or something like that. That had an in-depth hands on impressions write up. It just sounded amazing. It didn't even sound real the amount of things that the person was saying you could do.

and then it released. I got my PS2 with GTA 3 and Metal Gear Solid 2 that christmas. And GTA was everything it was hyped up to be and more tbh. It changed gaming

 

[Carmen Winstead]

Shouldn't be too long for the trailer after that leak.
But boy Rockstar if you make GTA 6 a crossgen game I will never forgive you.

 

[mortal]

Didn't the first official teaser for GTA V drop in November as well?
R* tend to officially announce/unveil games on their own terms, and GTA anniversary seems like it would be a great time, but who knows.

The GTA VI leak alone made a huge splash, so the first official preview of the most recent build would dominate the gaming sphere for at least couple of months straight.

 

[Moses85]

Didn't the first official teaser for GTA V drop in November as well?
R* tend to officially announce/unveil games on their own terms, and GTA anniversary seems like it would be a great time, but who knows.

The GTA VI leak alone made a huge splash, so the first official preview of the most recent build would dominate the gaming sphere for at least couple of months straight.

 

[Mr Hyde]

Vice City is still my favorite GTA. The 80s era and parody of Miami Vice and movies like Scarface was so damn good. And Ray Liotta did a stellar performance as Tommy Vercetti, long before it was standard practice to have big name celebrities in video games. Rest in peace, you are truly missed.

 

[Filldo]

Vice City is still my favorite GTA. The 80s era and parody of Miami Vice and movies like Scarface was so damn good. And Ray Liotta did a stellar performance as Tommy Vercetti, long before it was standard practice to have big name celebrities in video games. Rest in peace, you are truly missed.

Vice City was such an amazing experience. The music, the voice acting. It was all a huge step up from 3. And 3 was mind blowing when it came out. I grew up in a cult and didn't get to listen to much secular music. I was 17 when I started listening to music on my own and for some reason had this bias against the 80s. I just thought it was all cheesy synth garbage. Vice City educated me on what the 80s really were. Fun. I'd just graduated college when Vice City came out. So many 80s songs now remind me of my favorite thing in the game which was delivering pizzas. Why? I don't know, maybe it was the paper boy vibe, or just being stoned and doing something mindlessly fun while listening to an epic game soundtrack. First thing I did when I bought the definitive edition was get to the point where I could deliver pizzas. Completed the whole thing first try. Way easier on the new version with better control and navigation! And yeah, I know everyone hates on it but for someone who played the fuck out of the original (even got a lousy shirt for 100% completion!) it felt like a big improvement and was great to revisit despite some missing music. Sorry for rambling, you triggered some nostalgia.

 

[Dick Jones]

Vice City is still my favorite GTA. The 80s era and parody of Miami Vice and movies like Scarface was so damn good. And Ray Liotta did a stellar performance as Tommy Vercetti, long before it was standard practice to have big name celebrities in video games. Rest in peace, you are truly missed.

Couldn't say it better myself

 

[Deerock71]

I've been playing Vice City on my Switch. It's fun. Ray Liotta RIP.

 

[Soltype]

They should remaster 1-SA to commemorate , they certainly have the money to spend on a good remaster.

 

[amigastar]

I remember only having that timed demo and replaying it over and over and over and over again.

Yes, the demo was awesome. After 5 min i think you blow up.

 

[ReBurn]

GTA 3 on PS2 was my obsession. I played it so much that whenever I saw a garbage truck my brain superimposed the word "Trashmaster" over reality.

 

[GrayDock]

And I never played any of them...
But I bought GTA V, who didn't, and will play it after GoW Ragnarok.

 

[Paulxo87]

My first experience with the series was gta2 on the original playstation. Certainly an interesting game. I don't think I finished it though. GTA3 I was there on release for PS2. It was sort of a sleeper hit I remember. This was back before we had wide spread use of the internet, youtube, etc. Most of the latest news was still from magazines. It was groundbreaking. I remember the game went viral - Needless to say all my friends wanted to be at my house for weeks!