Grand Theft Auto III

Grand Theft Auto III (abbreviated as GTA III or GTA3) is a sandbox-style action-adventure computer and video game develope by DMA Design (now Rockstar North), and published by Rockstar Games. It is the first 3D title in the Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series and the third original title overall. It was released in October 2001 for the PlayStation 2 video game console, May 2002 for Windows-based personal computers, and in November 2003 for the Xbox video game console. The game was preceded by Grand Theft Auto 2 and succeeded by Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

The game centres on a nameless criminal who was betrayed by his girlfriend in a bank heist, and is required to work his way

up the crime ladder of the city before confronting her. Like its predecessors, GTA III implements sandbox-like gameplay,

where the player is given the freedom to explore a large city, complete missions, commit criminal acts, or complete side

missions.

The game’s concept and gameplay, coupled with the use of a three dimensional game engine for the first time in the series,

contributed to GTA III’s positive reception upon its release; it quickly became 2001’s top selling video game and is cited as

a landmark in video games for its far-reaching influence within the industry. GTA III’s success was a significant factor

in the series’ subsequent popularity; as of 2008, five GTA prequels set before events in GTA III have been released. GTA

III’s violent and sexual content has also been the source of moral panic and controversy.

Setting
Grand Theft Auto III takes place in Liberty City, a fictional city on the East Coast based on New York City. The timeline of

the game was set at around the autumn of 2001, the present time around the first release of GTA III, October 22, 2001; this

was indicated by the Liberty Tree website, which included plot points that connect to events in the beginning of the game, in

its last existing monthly entry, dated October 18, 2001.

Throughout the story, the protagonist and player character is never named, but is often referred to as “Kid” and sometimes

“Fido”. The player character is also a silent protagonist, never uttering a single word.
Plot
The player character has robbed the Liberty City Bank with his girlfriend Catalina, along with a male accomplice. Whilst

running from the scene, Catalina turns to him and utters “Sorry babe, I’m an ambitious girl, and you… you’re just small

time”. She shoots him and he is left for dead in an alley; the accomplice is also seen lying nearby. It soon becomes apparent

that the player character has survived, but has been arrested, and subsequently found guilty and sentenced to jail. While he

is being transferred, an attack on the police convoy aimed at kidnapping an unrelated prisoner sets him free.

With the help of a fellow escaped prisoner, the player character then takes on work as a local thug and rises in power as he

works for multiple rival crime gangs, a corrupt police officer and a media mogul. In the process, Maria, the wife of a local

Mafia boss, begins to show a liking to him. The Mafia leader Salvatore grows suspicious of this and lures the player to a

death trap, although Maria saves him, remaining close to him throughout the storyline. He later goes to work for others

including the Liberty City Yakuza and media mogul Donald Love. Eventually, his exploits attract the attention of Catalina,

now affiliated with a Colombian drug cartel, resulting in the kidnapping of Maria. This gives him the opportunity to face

Catalina once more, which results in a large firefight and Catalina’s death.
Characters
Main article: List of characters in Grand Theft Auto III
In addition to the exploits of the game’s player character, the storyline, while not as integral to the game as its sequels,

depicts the character development of several non-player individuals and bosses, through cut scenes before the start of each

mission, as the player progresses though the game. Most of the characters encountered revolve around corruption, crime and a

fictional drug called “SPANK,” which is a growing menace in the city.

With the success of Grand Theft Auto III and its sequels, several of these characters or their relatives reappear in future

GTA titles with major or minor roles, and their personal background expanded, particularly Leone family Don Salvatore Leone,

media mogul Donald Love, Phil, the One-Armed Bandit, 8-Ball and Catalina.

The voice cast for the game’s characters features several established celebrities. Notable voice actors include Frank

Vincent, Michael Madsen, Michael Rapaport, Joe Pantoliano, Debi Mazar, Kyle MacLachlan, and rapper Guru.
Gameplay
Grand Theft Auto III inherits and modifies much of the gameplay mechanics from its predecessors, Grand Theft Auto and Grand

Theft Auto 2, combining elements of a third-person shooter and a driving game in a new 3D game engine. The idea of using a 3D

game engine in such a genre however is not new; the first game to combine elements of action, shooting, and multiple-vehicle

driving in a 3D package was Body Harvest (1998), also developed by DMA Design, for the Nintendo 64. Publicly debuted in 1995

at Nintendo’s SpaceWorld video game trade show, it was revolutionary for its time, but despite above average reviews, the

game sold poorly. GTA III takes the gameplay elements of Body Harvest and combines them with the GTA series’ open-ended

game design to create a level of freedom and detail that was unprecedented in 2001.

On foot, the player’s character has the additional ability to sprint (but is incapable of swimming), as well as use weapons

and perform basic hand to hand combat; he is also capable of driving a variety of vehicles, (with the addition of watercraft

and a fixed-wing aircraft).
Running with a pistol in hand, Microsoft Windows version.Criminal offences, such as carjacking, murder and theft will result

in increasing levels of resistance from the authorities. If the player’s “wanted” level reaches certain levels, the police,

FBI, and army will respond accordingly. When the player character collapses from his injuries or is arrested, he will

re-spawn at a local hospital or police station respectively, at the expense of losing all weapons and armor and an amount of

money for medical expenses or bribes. While this is similar to previous Grand Theft Auto games, the player character is

essentially offered unlimited “lives,” as opposed to the limited number of lives in GTA1 and GTA2. This allows the player

character to “die” as many times as he pleases, and render it impossible to indefinitely lose in the game.

A major feature in GTA III’s predecessors that allowed the player to obtain cash by committing petty crimes has been

downplayed in GTA III, encompassing only car ramming, vehicle destruction and pedestrian killing. The amount of money in the

player’s possession is no longer a requirement to unlock new areas in GTA III. Instead, the completion of missions and

unfolding of the game’s storyline are now responsible for this role. Additionally, the player is allowed to return to all

unlocked areas of the city. However, as new areas open up, access to other, previously available areas becomes more dangerous

or less accessible, due to hostilities from enemy gangs.

The interface of the game has been significantly overhauled. The player-centred compass is replaced with a separate mini-map

that also displays a map of the city and key locations (safe houses and contact points) or targets. Armour and health levels

are now indicated in numbers, and a 24-hour clock is added. Gang behaviour is no longer dictated by “respect” meters used in

GTA2; instead, the player character’s progress through the story affects his view in the “eyes” of gang members. As the

player completes missions for different gangs, rival gang members will come to recognize the character and subsequently shoot

on sight.

Multiplayer modes from previous GTA titles were dropped, favouring single player gameplay only. However, third-party

multiplayer modifications developed by members of the community are available.
Missions, non-linearity and narration
 
A pre-release screenshot of the PlayStation 2 version depicting the player character roaming about outside Kenji’s Casino.A

common trait GTA III shares with the rest of the GTA series is the considerably non-linear gameplay. Missions that are

offered to the player primarily fall into two categories: storyline-based and side missions. While the game’s linear set of

storyline-based missions (e.g. shaking down a local business for “protection money,” clearing the streets of drug dealers, or

assassinating leaders of rival gangs) are required to advance the plot and unlock certain areas of the map, the player can

choose to complete them at his or her own leisure. Additionally, many of them are not mandatory. Alternately, it is possible

to ignore the main missions and only play side missions. If the player acquires a taxicab, he can pick up designated

non-player characters as fares and drop them off at different parts of the city for cash payments; obtaining an ambulance

allows the player to pick up injured non-player characters and drive them to the hospital for a cash reward. Fire fighting

and vigilante police missions are similarly available. However, if the player wishes, he or she may avoid all missions and

instead choose to explore the city, stealing cars, running over pedestrians, and avoiding (or opposing) the police.

A new inclusion into GTA III’s storyline is the use of cut scenes, which are triggered after entering a contact point, or

during certain missions. The cut scenes exist for multiple purposes: as a visual narration of the storyline, as formal

directives of a mission, and as a visual assessment of a scene and objective. During gameplay, mission updates and messages

are relayed through text-based instructions given in the form of on-screen subtitles, or on a few occasions, the player

character’s pager. GTA III also includes one-time tutorial directives to familiarize the player with the game’s controls and

features.
Weapons
 
A pre-release screenshot depicting the player character aiming for a drive-by shooting, a new feature in the series.The

selection of weapons provided in the game consists of firearms and explosives, with the addition of two forms of mêlée

attacks (hand to hand combat and baseball bat). The weapons themselves are largely similar to the selection of weapons from

GTA1 and GTA2, such as the pistol (Colt M1911), the machine gun (which has been expanded to include an Uzi submachine gun

(Micro Uzi), an AK-47 rifle and an M-16 rifle in Grand Theft Auto III), the rocket launcher and the flamethrower from GTA1,

and the shotgun and thrown weapons (Molotov cocktails and grenades) from GTA2. The porting of GTA III into a three

dimensional environment also allows access to first-person view, making the inclusion of the sniper rifle and first-person

aiming using the M-16 rifle and rocket launcher possible. In addition, it becomes possible in the game to perform drive-by

shooting using the Uzi, while the inclusion of magazine-based weapons introduces the need to reload weapons after a magazine

of ammunition is depleted. Additionally, wielding certain weapons would now restrict movement of the player. Weapons may be

purchased from local firearms dealers and businesses, retrieved for free from certain dead gang members, mission-specific

characters and law enforcers, or picked up in certain spots in the city.

All versions of GTA III allow the player to auto-aim using a gamepad with the push of a button, holding human targets at gun

point using most firearms, with the exception of first-person aiming for the sniper rifle, M-16 and rocket launcher, which

are aimed using the analog stick or mouse as the player presses the same auto aim button. The Microsoft Windows version

includes the additional ability to look around and aim freely with a mouse while on foot; this control difference is seen in

the console and Microsoft Windows ports of Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Radio stations and other media
Main article: Grand Theft Auto III soundtrack
 
Stealing a “Stallion” car in the Microsoft Windows version.One of the game’s subtler inclusions was a variety of radio

stations. The stations feature music specially written for the game (as well as many songs originating from the first two

GTAs), but also includes licensed music, some of which were excerpts of several actual music albums; this combination differs

from those of the game’s predecessors, which featured entirely original soundtracks. One of the stations is a full-length

talk show, and many of the callers are actually characters from the story missions, often demonstrating the same views and

eccentricities that become apparent to the player during the missions.

Additionally, an online format of the fictional Liberty Tree newspaper, dedicated to events that took place within and

outside Liberty City between February 2001 and October 2001, was made available months ahead of GTA III’s release. The

website, working in tandem with the official map-based website and sub-pages, also served to provide a back-story to GTA III,

while evoking a sense that the reported events had actually taken place in real time, releasing monthly issues in its nine

months of activity. The site also includes articles on criminal activities in the city and city development (i.e. delayed

tunnel completion and the growth of Love Media in the city), and various advertising to fictional products. Pre-released

screenshots of gameplay, the city’s environment and characters were used as photographs for certain news articles.

Various commercials are featured on both the radio stations and the Liberty Tree website. Certain ads often referred to their

advertisers’ official websites, such as Petsovernight.com. All of these sites actually existed; they were set up to tie in

with the game. However, although looking very much like genuine online stores, all links to purchase or order the products

actually led to Rockstargames.com.
Game engine
Grand Theft Auto III’s new game engine and graphics are significant departures from its predecessors, most notably for its

use of a forward viewing perspective as the default view, similar to a majority of third-person shooters and driving games,

and improved street-level graphics. The game also includes several additional camera views, including top-down perspective

used in full in GTA III’s predecessors, and a cinematic view. The game is the last major title in the GTA series, with the

exception of Grand Theft Auto Advance, to include top-down camera views. For console versions of GTA III, the game runs under

a lower display resolution dictated by the console, while the Microsoft Windows version permits resolutions of up to 1600 by

1200 pixels.

The environment in-game is primarily displayed through the use of level of detail (LOD), applied by allowing only areas

directly surrounding the player to display objects in higher polygon counts (including vehicles, buildings and terrain) or

minor props (e.g. street furniture), while areas far from the player are displayed with lower polygons and the lack of

details. As such, LODs aid GTA III in displaying a large environment with a further draw distance, while ensuring that the

game’s performance remains optimum. When travelling within an island in the city, the game consistently swaps models of

varied detail as the player moves from one area to another. As the player travels into another island, the game is required

to load detailed models files of the entire destination island while also loading low detailed models for the islands the

player is leaving, requiring substantially more processing time; in the process, the game displays a “Welcome to…” screen

for a short amount of time, before gameplay can resume.

As is the environment, vehicles and pedestrians are depicted in full three dimensional models, compared to flat top-down

sprites in previous games. Both vehicles and pedestrians are constructed from individual polygon parts with a central “core”

(the wheels, engine, chassis and body of vehicles, and the torso of pedestrians). The damage system of vehicles consists of

representing the minor vehicle parts (doors, frontal quarter panels and bumpers) as undamaged, damaged or missing, based on

the types of collisions detected on the vehicle; the core of each vehicle, remains visually unchanged despite heavy damage.

As pedestrians in GTA III are made out of separate polygon parts (limbs, a head and a torso), it is possible to detach the

limbs of a pedestrian or effectively “popping” the head of the pedestrian (through heavy firearms or explosives). This

feature is evident in the Microsoft Windows version, but is not included by default in the PlayStation 2 version, It is

unlocked through a cheat implemented into the game.

As the game runs in a 24 hour cycle and includes changing weather, the game engine is also required to simulate day and night

periods, as well as weather effects. This is possible by adjusting surrounding visual effects and details in accordance to

the time of the day and present weather. Other minor details, like a rainbow after a rain, and the sun, which moves from the

northeast of the city in the morning to the southwest in the evening, are also present.

The game is the first in the series to use motion blurring (dubbed “Trails” in the Microsoft Windows and Xbox versions of the

game), semi-transparently rendering the last in-game video frame to the current frame; the feature could be toggled on and

off.
Cuts, changes, and the 9/11 effect
Prior to the 2001 release of the final game, several modifications were made on Grand Theft Auto III. The changes were

apparent as several promotional materials had previously displayed features that would be absent in the final version of the

game. While cuts and changes are frequent during game development, the changes in GTA III were of note as they were made

around the time when the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred; this led some gamers to speculate that at least some of the

changes were motivated by the attacks. Although little was disclosed about the types of changes to be made and when they were

conducted, Sam Houser, the president of Rockstar Games (based in Manhattan, New York City), was quoted September 19, 2001 in

mentioning a review would to be undergone for GTA III, in addition to confirming the delay of the game’s release by three

weeks (the original, rough release date was suggested by Houser to be on October 2, 2001):

“ …our biggest games, including Grand Theft Auto [III], have been delayed slightly.
This decision is based on two factors, firstly it has been a little difficult to get work done in downtown Manhattan in the

last week since basic communications infrastructure has been intermittent at best, and secondly we felt that a full content

review of all our titles was absolutely necessary for us in light of the horrifying event we all witnessed in NYC last week.

As for Grand Theft Auto [III], since the game is so huge the review is no short process. So far we have come across certain

small contextual references that we were no longer comfortable with, as well as a couple of very rare game play instances

that no longer felt appropriate to us. We [apologize] to you and all the people waiting for this game to ship for the delays

that have now ensued, but I’m sure you can understand our reasoning.
 ”
 
A comparison of the same present pre-release screenshot (as of April 2006) from GameSpot (top), among several gaming

websites, and the official GTA III website (bottom). GameSpot’s version depicts police cars resembling those of the NYPD

pre-2000, while the official, edited version resembles those of the LAPD.The only change on the game that has been suggested

to have been made shortly after 9/11 was of the police cars’ paint scheme; the new colour scheme of the LCPD is modelled in a

panda-like black-and-white design similar to the LAPD, while the old color scheme of blue with white stripes (seen in

previews and the manual map) resembles that of the NYPD. Pre-release screenshots in the game’s official website depicting

police cars had also undergone modifications, around a week after September 11. The NYPD-like paint scheme would

eventually be reintroduced in Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, but uses black instead of NYPD’s blue colour.

Another cut is that of Darkel , an in-game character, for the final version of the game. Mentioned in several early video

game publications and websites, Darkel was to be a revolutionary urchin who vowed to bring down the city’s economy. One

mission involved stealing an ice cream van, using it to attract pedestrians, then blowing it up (this mission would

eventually be given by El Burro instead in the final version of game to kill a group of gang members). Darkel was also

originally expected to give out Rampage-like missions, and even had his voice recorded for this part. Rockstar later

decided that they would like to go back to the original system of giving out rampages as featured in Grand Theft Auto and

Grand Theft Auto 2. Although Darkel and his missions were removed indefinitely, the character remains listed in the manual’s

credits, as well as having a character texture retained in the game’s data files. Another reminisce of Darkel’s existence

is an abandoned tunnel in the city, associated with the character in the official website, and includes four homeless people

in a group wielding Molotov cocktails. Both the tunnel and the four homeless people are retained in the final version of the

game.

The Dodo airplane, the only drivable aircraft in the game, was also a point of discussion; the wings of the vehicle were

significantly short, while an uncontrollable full-winged version has been seen flying around the city. However, the plane

has, for months before 9/11, had a short wingspan, as evidenced from a preview in Game Informer (Issue #95), which indicated

that the plane was to be used in a (now abandoned) mission to loft the plane high enough in its brief flight and reach new

areas of the city. The Dodo is considerably difficult to control, usually resulting in short flights (although it is

possible to fly the plane continuously around Liberty City when properly trained). Mods exist to give the Dodo a wider wing,

though the outer sections are not solid. Otherwise, the aircraft would not be able to fit into the import/export garage at

the docks in Portland Island.

Other changes included stopping the selection of certain character models when using cheat codes in, removing the

aforementioned ability to blow limbs off non-player characters in only the PlayStation 2 version of GTA III, elderly

pedestrians with walkers, school children as pedestrians (from GameSpot UK’s preview[citation needed] and the Gouranga

fansite[citation needed]) and a school bus (seen in eight screenshots).
Reception, awards, and sales
Awards
GameSpot’s Best and Worst of 2001 Most Innovative Game, Best Action/Adventure Game, Best PlayStation 2 Game, Game

of the Year
IGN’s Best of 2001 Best Action Game for PlayStation 2 (Editor’s Choice and Reader’s Choice), PlayStation 2 Game of the

Year
Upon its release, Grand Theft Auto III received very positive reviews; while minor problems and comments pertaining to

graphics, performance and controls were noted, GTA III was touted as revolutionary by several game review websites and

publications. With reviews of 9.6/10 from IGN and GameSpot, 9/10 from Edge, 10/10 from Official U.S. PlayStation

Magazine, 9.4 from GameSpy and an average score of 95%, according to Game Rankings, the game won several awards,

such as GameSpot’s Console Game of the Year, Game of the Year from GameSpy and Cheat Code Central, and Best Action Game of

2001 by IGN. The game’s average review score of 97% on Metacritic ties it with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 for the highest

ranked game in PlayStation 2 history. It was also inducted into GameSpot’s Greatest Games of All Time list.

GTA III unexpectedly emerged as a smash hit at its initial US$49.95 price and became the #1 selling video game of 2001 in the

United States.[citation needed] Later discounted to $19.95 as part of Sony’s “Greatest Hits” program, it continued to sell

well and went on to become the second best-selling video game of 2002, behind its sequel, Grand Theft Auto: Vice

City.[citation needed] GTA III continued to enjoy strong sales as part of the Xbox Double Pack,[citation needed] even though

it was two years old when the Double Pack hit shelves in December 2003.

As of September 25, 2007, Grand Theft Auto III is the ninth best-selling video game in the United States, behind its

successors Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. As of September 26, 2007, Grand Theft Auto III

has sold 12 million units, with 5.7 million of those units being sold in the US.

Although the Grand Theft Auto series had been an underground success prior to the release of GTA III, it was this game that

first brought the series mainstream success and widespread accolades. The success of GTA III resulted in two console and

Microsoft Windows sequels (Vice City, San Andreas), both of which were able to replicate GTA III’s success (arguably more so

than GTA III); as well as three additional titles for handheld consoles (Grand Theft Auto Advance, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty

City Stories and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories).

Video game critics and players have used the term “GTA clone” to describe the slew of video games released which attempted to

emulate the sandbox gameplay of GTA III.

GamePro recently called GTA III the most important video game of all-time, explaining that the game’s open-ended gameplay

elements have revolutionized the way all video games are made. Similarly, IGN ranked GTA III among the Top 10 Most

Influential Games.
Controversy
 
Police trouble, Microsoft Windows version. The ability to kill police officers was one of the points of controversy for GTA

III.Grand Theft Auto III was and remains very controversial because of its violent and sexual content, and it generated

outrage from many upon its release. For examples of video game violence, many TV news channels often show a play session of

GTA III where the main character is gunning down pedestrians and blowing up police cars[citation needed]. The player is

rewarded with cash for various illegal and immoral actions. Frequently cited in the press is the opportunity for players to

carjack a vehicle, pick up a prostitute, have (implied) sex with the prostitute, and then kill her and steal her money.

This action, while permitted (”sex” restores the player’s health, up to 125% of its normal maximum), is never actually

required, nor is any particular suggestion made in the game that the prostitute should be killed. In addition, all in-game

crimes incur the wrath of the police. Various critics hypothesized that if children were to play the game, they might acquire

sociopathic attitudes toward others.[citation needed]

It was because of GTA III that the Wal-Mart chain of retail stores announced that, for games rated “M” by the ESRB, its

stores would begin checking the identification of purchasers who appeared to be under 17.[citation needed]

After its initial release in Australia, the game was banned for a period and a censored version of the game was to be

released in its place. A key reason why this course of action was taken was that Rockstar did not submit GTA III to the

Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC), the body that, among other things, rates video games according to their

content in Australia. Lacking a suitable R18+ rating (the highest rating being MA15+), the game was “Refused Classification”

and banned for sale because they felt that the game was unsuitable for minors. Australia still does not have an R rating for

video games like it does for movies. Among other things, the censored version removed gore and the ability to pick up

prostitutes; however, it was later found that the uncensored version was also playable by changing the computer’s time zone

to that of the United States.[verification needed]

While the Australian version of the sequel Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was censored by Rockstar, the next sequel Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was not, despite featuring more “mature” content (although, later, San Andreas was once given a Refused Classification rating amid the “Hot Coffee” controversy).

On October 20, 2003, the families of Aaron Hamel and Kimberly Bede, two young people shot by teens William and Josh Buckner (who in statements to investigators claimed their actions were inspired by GTA III) filed a US$246 million lawsuit against publishers Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive Software, retailer Wal-Mart, and PlayStation 2 manufacturer Sony Computer Entertainment America. Rockstar and its parent company, Take-Two, filed for dismissal of the lawsuit, stating in U.S.

District Court on October 29, 2003 that the “ideas and concepts as well as the ‘purported psychological effects’ on the Buckners are protected by the First Amendment’s free-speech clause.” The lawyer of the victims, Jack Thompson, denied thatand is attempting to move the lawsuit into a state court and under Tennessee’s consumer protection act.Ports and remakes
 
Microsoft Windows version screenshot: from Dodo cabin, one may see all the three islands at onceTwo years following the nitial PlayStation 2 release of Grand Theft Auto III, versions for the Microsoft Windows and Xbox had been made available.

GTA III is notable for being the first game in the series to be released on a video game console before a PC version was available. Following GTA III, PlayStation 2 GTA games generally followed GTA III release pattern, in which the Microsoft Windows port is released within seven to eight months after the PlayStation 2 versions’ release.

The Microsoft Windows version of the game, released on May 21, 2002, has been criticized for performance problems, especially in light of the much smoother performance of Vice City. This was due to technical issues; the game engine rendered everything within the draw distance, even things hidden behind buildings or trees, whereas Vice City only rendered what could actually be seen. The Microsoft Windows version does, however, support higher screen resolutions, have more detailed textures,[verification needed] and a custom option for MP3s playback in cars.
The Xbox version was initially supposed to be released in spring 2002 but it was shelved when Sony signed an agreement with Take-Two Interactive (Rockstar Games’ parent company), making the GTA series a PlayStation 2 exclusive until November 2004.[citation needed] However, the agreement was amended in 2003 and the Grand Theft Auto: Double Pack containing both GTA III and Vice City was released for PS2 and Xbox in December 2003. The Xbox version of the Double Pack has improved audio,polygon models, and reflections over the Microsoft Windows and PS2 versions of the game. The Double Pack was not released for the Microsoft Windows. On November 2005, GTA III was re-released again for the Xbox and PS2, this time bundled with Vice City and San Andreas in a trilogy compilation, dubbed Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy. There were no new changes, though the set retained Double Pack’s graphical improvements for GTA III and Vice City. A Nintendo GameCube port of GTA III was also planned to be released alongside the Xbox version, but was cancelled for unknown reasons.
Two handheld titles based on GTA III have also been released. Grand Theft Auto Advance was initially intended as a Game Boy Advance port of GTA III, but has since introduced a new storyline set in Liberty City, roughly one year before the events inGTA III. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2005 and later ported to thePS2. The game, which is also set in the same location as GTA III, takes place in 1998, three years before the events in GTA III.