# What is the best Grand Theft Auto game of all time?

> From revolutionary 3D cities to sun-drenched Vice City streets, GTA has redefined open-world gaming more than once. Old-school classics face off against modern juggernauts. Which one deserves the crown?

*By YPB Team · Published April 10, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-is-the-best-grand-theft-auto-game-of-all-time*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Grand Theft Auto III**
   A genre-defining masterpiece from 2001 that revolutionized gaming by moving the series into a fully realized 3D open world.
2. **Grand Theft Auto: Vice City**
   A sun-drenched 1980s crime epic following Tommy Vercetti rise through Miami-inspired Vice City, celebrated for its stellar story and iconic soundtrack.
3. **Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas**
   The most ambitious GTA entry of its era, with a massive three-city world, RPG mechanics, and CJ navigating gang life in 1990s California.
4. **Grand Theft Auto IV**
   A gritty, cinematic reimagining of Liberty City following immigrant Niko Bellic dark pursuit of the American Dream with unprecedented realism.
5. **Grand Theft Auto V**
   The best-selling entertainment product in history, featuring three playable protagonists, a vast Los Santos open world, and the thriving GTA Online.
6. **Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories**
   A 2006 PSP prequel to Vice City set in 1984 following soldier Victor Vance building a criminal empire, praised as an improvement over Liberty City Stories.
7. **Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories**
   A 2005 PSP-original prequel to GTA III following Toni Cipriani rise through the Leone crime family in Liberty City.
8. **Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars**
   A 2009 top-down return to Liberty City for Nintendo DS featuring a drug trade mechanic, considered one of the best handheld games ever made.

Tags: games, franchises, action, crime