Every GTA Game in Order: Stories, Settings and Release Dates

Last updated: September 23, 2026

There are 16 Grand Theft Auto games and expansions from 1997 to 2026. The main numbered series is GTA (1997), GTA 2 (1999), GTA III (2001), GTA IV (2008), GTA V (2013) and GTA VI (2026), with Vice City, San Andreas and several spin-offs in between.

All GTA games in release order

Year	Game	Setting	Protagonist
1997	Grand Theft Auto	Liberty City, San Andreas, Vice City	Choice of characters
1999	GTA: London 1969 (and London 1961)	London	Choice of characters
1999	Grand Theft Auto 2	Anywhere City	Claude Speed
2001	GTA III	Liberty City	Claude
2002	GTA: Vice City	Vice City, 1986	Tommy Vercetti
2004	GTA: San Andreas	San Andreas, 1992	Carl “CJ” Johnson
2004	GTA Advance	Liberty City	Mike
2005	GTA: Liberty City Stories	Liberty City, 1998	Toni Cipriani
2006	GTA: Vice City Stories	Vice City, 1984	Victor Vance
2008	GTA IV	Liberty City	Niko Bellic
2009	GTA IV: The Lost and Damned	Liberty City	Johnny Klebitz
2009	GTA: Chinatown Wars	Liberty City	Huang Lee
2009	GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony	Liberty City	Luis Lopez
2013	GTA V	Los Santos, San Andreas	Michael, Franklin, Trevor
2013	GTA Online	Los Santos, San Andreas	Your own character
2026	GTA VI	Vice City, Leonida	Jason Duval, Lucia Caminos

The stories in brief

GTA III (2001): Claude is betrayed and left for dead by his girlfriend Catalina during a bank robbery, and climbs Liberty City’s underworld for revenge. The first 3D GTA.
Vice City (2002): Tommy Vercetti, fresh out of prison, survives an ambushed drug deal and builds his own empire in 1980s Vice City.
San Andreas (2004): CJ returns to Los Santos after his mother’s death and fights to rebuild Grove Street across an entire state.
GTA IV (2008): Niko Bellic arrives in Liberty City chasing the American dream and a man from his past, and finds neither is what he hoped.
GTA V (2013): A retired bank robber, a young street hustler and an unhinged ex-military pilot team up for heists across Los Santos.
GTA VI (2026): Jason and Lucia, a criminal couple, try to survive and get ahead in the state of Leonida. Meet the characters →

FAQ

What order should I play GTA games in?

Each game has a standalone story, so you can play in any order. For the modern era, start with GTA V, then GTA VI.

How many GTA games are there?

Sixteen games and expansions from 1997 to 2026, counting spin-offs and GTA IV’s two episodes.

Every GTA Game in Order: Stories, Settings and Release Dates

All GTA games in release order

The stories in brief

FAQ

What order should I play GTA games in?

How many GTA games are there?

Subscribe to newsletter and get early access