Grand Theft Auto Games in Order

Why this order?

Grand Theft Auto is best played in release order, and that is the order this list defaults to. Unlike a tightly serialized franchise, GTA does not tell one continuous story across its games. Each mainline title is its own self-contained crime saga with its own protagonist and city, so you can start almost anywhere. Release order simply lets you watch the series evolve from the chaotic top-down original into the sprawling open worlds that defined modern gaming.

The crucial thing to understand is that the games sit in two separate continuities. The "3D universe" covers Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City, and San Andreas, set in a shared stylized version of America during the 1980s through early 2000s. The "HD universe" begins with Grand Theft Auto IV and continues with Grand Theft Auto V, rebooting the same locations with grittier tone and modern tech. The two universes reuse brand names, radio stations, and cities like Liberty City and Los Santos, but they are not the same world and their stories do not connect. Treat the IV-to-V jump as a fresh continuity, not a sequel to San Andreas. The HD universe continues with Grand Theft Auto VI, which releases November 19, 2026 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

If you want to play the 3D universe today, the practical answer is Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition, which is why it sits in this list as its own step. Rockstar pulled the original III, Vice City and San Andreas from digital stores in October 2021, briefly sold them again on its own store afterwards, and the originals have not been sold digitally since mid-2022. The three games come only as one bundle, so there is no way to buy San Andreas on its own. The bundle launched in poor shape and the reputation stuck, but the November 12, 2024 update added the Classic Lighting option first seen in the December 14, 2023 mobile version and closed the biggest visual complaints, so it is a reasonable buy today rather than the disaster its launch coverage suggests.

The first two games, Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto 2, sit in an even earlier top-down era and are largely standalone curiosities today, though they establish the satirical tone everything that followed inherited. If you only want the era-defining experiences, start at III and move forward.

Grand Theft Auto IV now sells only as the Complete Edition, which is good news for a buyer because it includes both episodes, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony. Those are true add-on campaigns rather than sequels, so this page lists them as expansions under GTA IV instead of giving them their own steps. Two things are worth knowing before you buy: the March 19, 2020 Complete Edition rework removed multiplayer, Games for Windows Live and the three episode-exclusive radio stations RamJam FM, Self-Actualization FM and Vice City FM, and separately a 2018 music licence expiry stripped more than fifty songs from the radio and rebuilt stations like Vladivostok FM.

Grand Theft Auto V has shipped across three console generations, so it pays to know which one you are buying. The original arrived September 17, 2013 on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, a PlayStation 4 and Xbox One version followed on November 18, 2014, and PC came on April 14, 2015. The current-generation release landed March 15, 2022 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S with ray tracing, 4K and 60fps modes and faster loading, and that is what you get buying on current hardware. It adds no new single-player content, which is why it is a better-looking version of the same game rather than a separate step here. On PC, a free upgrade on March 4, 2025 created Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced as its own store listing and renamed the older build Grand Theft Auto V Legacy, so check which of the two you are launching.

This page lists the mainline console entries plus the remaster bundle that is now the only way to buy three of them. The handheld spin-offs and Rockstar's other open-world series, like Red Dead Redemption and Bully, sit outside this list but share the studio's DNA if you want more after finishing.