Which past GTA games are still worth your time?

While the classic Grand Theft Auto series only became popular for many after the release of Vice City, it had actually been going on since 1997 when it was in strict 2D. But are those GTA games from the past still worthy of being revisited, or are they better left forgotten?

The forgotten Grand Theft Auto games you should play before GTA 6

Grand Theft Auto (1997)

Released by UK company DMA Design, previously famous mostly for the puzzle series Lemmings, the original Grand Theft Auto is a top-down 2D game that started development in 1995 and originally focused on a police officer in pursuit of criminals. The publisher noted that that had been done before, and DMA Design was quick to reverse the roles in order to make it more interesting.

It is strange to consider that the GTA series is so old that the first game in the series actually received a (pretty competent) Game Boy Color port. But yes, that's where we are. The original Grand Theft Auto featured the same kind of story as many other games in the series, with a criminal trying to raise the ranks of several organizations by trying to help other members of the gang and commit crimes of their own.

While the perspective and the lack of 3D graphics make the game feel like a relic of the past, the overall freedom and complete recklessness of the experience were unmatched back then. In this one, the objective is not to complete missions but, instead, to reach a certain number of points, arcade-style. Those points can be reached by doing mostly anything that the game rewards, including some quite evil things.

Compared to other games in the series, the original Grand Theft Auto also brings quite a unique sense of wack and chaos. Imagine being able to drive a classic yellow school bus into a crowd with the game praising your combo, making doughnuts with your motorbike on top of a hospital building, or driving a tank onto incoming traffic. Those were the days, for sure.

Grand Theft Auto also spoke to DMA Design's willingness to let the player experiment with how easy it was to mod the game. You could easily change the entire script simply by editing a text document that was in the same folder as the game. Did you want the criminals to have the names of your friends? Two minutes in Notepad, and it would be done.

The game already features all the cities that would make part of the series in the future, including San Andreas and Vice City, except they were simply different levels of the same game. Clearly, they were much smaller in size than what we would see later in subsequent titles of the series. The most interesting thing about the original GTA is how close it is to the current gameplay of the series and its style, despite so many changes to the gameplay and the overall size and vibe.

Sadly, playing this today is a little difficult. Rockstar once offered them as free PC executables, but those links have since been removed, and official releases don't appear in modern stores.

The Grand Theft Auto London expansions (1999)

There is not much to say about the two expansions that were released in the wake of the commercial success of the original Grand Theft Auto. It is the same kind of gameplay and overall story, except that now it takes place in London and, specifically, in 1969.

It would have been quite a great experience if, at the time, Rockstar had enough money for a fully licensed psych-rock soundtrack from the time. But, alas, no such luck. Interestingly, this was the first title in the series developed by Rockstar Games through the Rockstar Canada studio. Everything in the game was actually developed by using a third-party mod, GTACars, so basically, the mod scene was already so big that even the developers took advantage of it.

Overall, while both expansions were fine for the time, they are not really worth your time today, as they replicate the basic gameplay of the original game with limited additions. This is a must-play for fans who are madly in love with the idea of driving a double-decker bus in late '70s London, though.

That is the one idea we would like to see come back for the series; since Vice City, there haven't been any more treks to the past. Nailing the vibe of late '60s London was quite the catch for many, instead of a generic Scarface-like '80s.

Grand Theft Auto 2 (1999)

Released the same year as the London expansion, this time Rockstar was taking the series into the future. It is not very clear what year the game is supposed to take place, but we are apparently playing in "Anywhere City" and in a generic dystopian future. Again, the objective is to rise the ranks of a criminal organization, this time by completing missions.

Except for this quite unique setting (which is also one we would like to see replicated in the future of the series), a slight graphical upgrade, and additions like hover cars and vaguely futuristic weapons, there is not much worthy of note in this sequel. GTA2 did introduce the idea of having a selection of different radio stations to listen to, though.

Overall, this is one that is safe to skip, as the sequel failed to innovate or feature any new gameplay ideas. Sure, there were some improvements, such as finally getting a health meter instead of trying to judge how long your character has before they die, but not much else.

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (2005)

Released in October 2005, initially as a PSP exclusive, this was the first time the series went with a mobile-exclusive title that acted as a counterpart to the plot in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

It wasn't simply a port of the classic gameplay of the series. Instead, Liberty City Stories went in a different direction by making the whole empire building a key part of the experience. A sort of cross between the gang wars and properties of Vice City and San Andreas, we are tasked with operating several businesses taken over by enemy gangs, making them profitable and keeping them safe from other hostile takeovers.

A unique feature of the PSP version was the ability to add custom music tracks and make your personalized radio station. It may not sound like much, but in a pre-Spotify world, this was much appreciated.

While Liberty City Stories doesn't reinvent the wheel, it does stand on its own as a unique experience in the world of GTA. This is a great way to experience a new story in the world of the series without resorting to mods. Unfortunately, if you are looking to play it legally today, you are pretty much limited to the mobile version, which has been pretty much abandoned since 2014. Ergo, do not expect the game to take advantage of your modern and powerful smartphone.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (2006)

Following up on Liberty City Stories was another chapter in the same sub-series. Released in late 2006, Vice City Stories acts as a prequel to the events of the game, following a disgraced U.S. Army corporal who tries to raise money to pay for his brother's medications.

While there are no big improvements, Vice City Stories allows you to interact with the many bodies of water, not just by swimming but via a JetSki and being able to dive briefly underwater. There are some minor additions to the gameplay that had never been seen before in a GTA game, such as the ability for players to bribe policemen or nurses, so you can keep all your arsenal intact even after getting caught or "Wasted." A new Beach Patrol mode lets you play a Baywatch simulation on the beaches of Vice City, with Victor out to save people's lives from drowning or dispatching thugs to take care of situations.

This is another quite worthy addition for any fans of the series looking for some extra quality time to spend in Vice City. Unfortunately, as opposed to Liberty City stories, this one -- for some reason -- was never ported on mobile, so it is even tougher to obtain legally. The only way to play it today is either to own a PSP or have the PlayStation 2 re-release. But it is worth it; who would want to miss the first videogame in which Phil Collins appears as himself?

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (2009)

Released in March 2009 for both Sony PSP and Nintendo DS, along with later mobile ports, Chinatown Wars has been, as for the time of writing, the final entry into the secondary Grand Theft Auto stories. It is also a fan favorite and, also, one of my favorite titles in the series.

Against the background of the then-current GTA IV plot, Chinatown Wars tells the story of how Huang Lee arrived from China, survived an attempt on his life, and then set out to find out what really happened while trying to make his way to Liberty City.

With a hip-hop and electro-rich soundtrack, plus rich references to past games in the series (like the return of gun store Ammunation in the form of a website), Chinatown Wars is a great way to spend some time while waiting for the sixth official chapter. But there are a couple of things before you dive in.

It is strange to recommend the technically inferior version of a game, but in this case, I think the Nintendo DS version of GTA Chinatown Wars is what makes the game worth playing, not only because of the overall cel-shaded look in the cutscenes (which makes this one stand out from the classic 3D era of GTA), but also for the touchscreen controls.

While the top screen shows the current action and information on what you have to do, the touchscreen is where the real action takes place. By swiping up and down on the touchscreen, you could change radio stations, select things on your PDA, re-route the directions on your GPS, and even throw Molotov cocktails and grenades.

If you want to play one extra Grand Theft Auto title outside of the main series, make it Chinatown Wars on the Nintendo DS -- though it might be hard to get today. Will video games get cooler than being able to whistle down a taxi just by blowing into the DS's microphone? I honestly don't think so.

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