Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition has arrived, with a surprisingly small wait between its launch and its release.
But the launch has been far from smooth. The GTA remasters arrived in a somewhat of a sorry state, full of bugs, glitches and performance problems. But Rockstar has acknowledged and apologized for the GTA remasters mess, and it looks like it'll be working on polish the games, comprising Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, up for modern consoles.
We suggest you proceed with caution before buying Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition.
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If you absolutely cannot wait to give your favorite GTA titles one more spin, then read on to learn everything we know about Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy latest news (updated November 20)
- Rockstar has acknowledged and apologized for the GTA remasters mess, but we're wondering it it'll be too little, too late.
- The GTA Trilogy game has been marred with bugs and graphical glitches since launch, and it's arguably the worst disaster since Cyberpunk 2077.
- Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy PC requirements show that any decently spec'd computer can play the game.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy release date
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy is available in digital download and physical form right now.
The collection — which bundles together Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas — will launch on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC by way of the Rockstar Games Launcher.
The collection will debut on mobile devices within the first half of 2022 as well. A standalone version of GTA: San Andreas has been released on Xbox Game Pass, with a standalone version of GTA 3 hitting PlayStation Now.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy trailer
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy gameplay
GTA: The Trilogy brings a range of gameplay enhancements to these classic games in order to make them more accessible to modern players. After all, GTA 3 is 20 years old now and it can definitely be hard to go back to the older games in the series after spending hundreds of hours playing GTA 5.
Rockstar has detailed the full list of changes in a blog post, but the biggest improvement looks to be “Grand Theft Auto V-style controls and targeting” across all three games. This means no more accelerating with face buttons. If you’ve played a modern GTA the upgraded control scheme should feel instantly familiar to you.
There's an updated weapon/radio selection wheels, as well as an improved mini-map that is easier to read and allows you to set custom waypoints. One announcement that has got diehard GTA fans very pleased is the confirmation that you’ll be able to restart failed missions instantly. This was sorely missing from the original versions of all three games.
Nintendo Switch players get a few extra gameplay options. You can control the camera and navigate menus using the system’s touch screen, plus gyro aiming will be included like in games such as Splatoon 2.
As an aside, if you want to see an open-world done right, then check out Horizon Forbidden West.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy visuals
GTA: The Trilogy is not a full-scale remake of these classic open-world games, but they’ve all been given enough spit and polish to look noticeably better than their original counterparts.
Rockstar confirmed that all three games get higher resolution textures. This gives everything from character models to vehicles a whole new level of detail. The lighting system has also been completely overhauled with enhanced shadows, reflections and more.
Weather and water effects have been improved, and there are enchanted details in trees and foliage. These are small improvements that will make a sizeable difference. Not to mention an increased draw distance, this will likely be most noticeable in the sprawling world of GTA: San Andreas.
On PS5, Xbox Series X and PC, the games can run in 4K resolution with “up to 60 fps” performance. Unfortunately, on the less powerful Nintendo Switch, the collection is capped at 30 fps.
It’s still very obvious that these games aren’t 2021 releases, but the improvements made are more substantial than we expected.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy platforms
Rockstar Games has made it clear it wants everyone to be able to enjoy Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy when it launches later this year.
The collection is available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, the Rockstar Games Launcher on PC, iOS and Android.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy PC system requirements
Considering Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy is remastering games that are nearly 20 years old, the horsepower needed will not be high. At the very minimum, an affordable Nvidia or AMD GPU from as far back as 2013 will work. Although for better performance, Rockstar recommends a 900-series Nvidia GPU, which released in 2014.
Really, as long as you have a decently modern system, it will run Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy adequately. Now, to get the game running at 4K and 60fps, likely a beefier rig will be needed. But considering the game's more simplistic visuals, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 should suffice.
Minimum system requirements
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel Core i5-6600K / AMD FX-6300
- Memory: 8GB
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 2GB / AMD Radeon R9 280 3GB
- Disk: 45GB
Recommended system requirements
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel Core i7-2700K / AMD Ryzen 5 2600
- Memory: 16GB
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 4GB / AMD Radeon RX 570 4GB
- Disk: 45GB
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy outlook
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition seems like good news for fans of the series. Still, Rockstar has yet to divulge any additional information about GTA 6, which can't help but feel a little disappointing. Either way, it's good to see any sort of "new" content from the franchise.
This collection appears to offer a stronger graphical and gameplay overhaul than we first expected. It's arguably not as good as a new game, but it's still something that should put a glimmer of hope in the eyes of hardcore GTA fans. And for once, it's not a "here we go again" situation yet more GTA Online updates.
