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All 7 Mainline GTA Games, Ranked
Collider ranks the seven mainline Grand Theft Auto games ahead of GTA VI’s planned 19 November 2026 release, tracing the series’ development from controversial top-down crime games to a major cultural and commercial franchise.
– Grand Theft Auto (1997) is ranked seventh for establishing the series’ criminal sandbox, vehicle theft, police chases and cheats. – Grand Theft Auto II (1999) is sixth, praised for its futuristic setting, rival gang system and more reactive world. – Grand Theft Auto III (2001) is fifth for transforming the formula into a landmark 3D open-world city. – Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002) is fourth, recognised for its voiced protagonist and 1980s-inspired style.
In short
- GTA’s early games established its enduring open-world formula.
- GTA III made the series a 3D gaming benchmark.
- The ranking precedes GTA VI’s November 2026 release.
Explained simply
Grand Theft Auto is a video game series in which players control criminals navigating fictional cities, stealing vehicles and completing missions. Since the original game's launch in 1997, it has become one of the gaming industry's biggest commercial and cultural phenomena, with each instalment pushing technical boundaries and generating significant controversy and public interest.
The main series has comprised seven games released over nearly three decades, with each evolving the formula established by the original title. With the release of the next major entry, GTA VI, scheduled for November this year, media outlets are reflecting on what came before by ranking and reviewing the earlier games.
These retrospectives help both long-time fans and newcomers understand how the series developed from its origins as a relatively simple top-down crime game into the vast, complex open-world experiences seen in recent titles. The timing capitalises on renewed public attention as the gaming community anticipates this landmark franchise's next instalment.