There aren’t many video game series that can compare withGrand Theft Autoin terms of commercial success. Each entry in the series has performed fairly well, but the main ones have been hugely successful and rank among the highest-selling games ever. Altogether,the series has accumulated over 450 million sales,which is an outrageous number.
To put that into perspective, the entireFinal Fantasy series has sold approximately 200 million copies, so GTA is more than double that, despite being around for a shorter time and having fewer entries. So, it’s fair to call the Grand Theft Auto series a phenomenon. Yet, how do all of the games stack up against each other when it comes to sales? Here is the answer to that question.
There aren’t any reliable sales figures for Grand Theft Auto Advance or Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, so they’ve been excluded from the collection.
Finding sales figures for Grand Theft Auto 2 is surprisingly difficult. But one source claims that thesecond game sold 1.5 million copies. This is down from the original title.
In terms of quality, it wasn’t too much of a downgrade from the original. That said, neither of the first two games will rank amongthe best in the series, as GTA didn’t get really good until later. Also, the second game didn’t bring a lot of new things to the series, as it is similar to the original title.
The Grand Theft Auto series didn’t gain significant popularity until a few games in. Therefore, the sales for the first game in the series are naturally not among the biggest in the series. That said,selling 3.5 million copiesisn’t bad for an entry in a new series.
People’s opinions of the game weren’t quite as good as the sales numbers. However, the title still had a lot going for it, particularly at the time of its release. The open-world freedom it offers wasn’t something you saw in many games in the 90s.
Vice City Stories was originally released as a handheld title before later being ported onto the PS2. Handheld games in the GTA series don’t generally do as well as the main ones, as proven byVice City Stories' 4.5 million sales. Yes, this is higher than the first few games in the series, but they were released before Grand Theft Auto became a huge name.
When Vice City Stories came out, GTA was already a hugely popular series, so the expectations were higher at this point. Still, though, 4.5 million copies isn’t terrible in general. And the game is enjoyable to play.
The source used for Vice City Stories' sales figures was also used here.
Liberty City Stories was the first of the Stories sub-series, and the first 3D GTA game to land on handheld systems. These factors likely contributed to the game’s success, with sales of 8 million copies.
Compared to most of the other GTA games that were released in the 2000s, the number is fairly low. That said, for a handheld Grand Theft Auto, the sales are impressive. As a game, it isn’t fundamentally different from GTA 3, but more GTA 3-style gameplay is always welcome.
Grand Theft Auto 3 is often regarded as one ofthe most influential games ever made, due to its popularization of 3D open-world games, which are now very common. It was rewarded for its influence, as 14.5 million copies of the game were sold.
As the sales figures suggest, GTA 3 was the game that really made the Grand Theft Auto series a major one. Not only did it sell well, but it was generally a fantastic game. The title’s third-person 3D action is a lot of fun, as is exploring the open-world city.
Vice City was the direct follow-up to Grand Theft Auto 3. So, it had a lot to live up to in terms of sales, and it managed that with 17.5 million copies sold. Naturally, the success of GTA 3 and the increased popularity it created for the series really assisted in Vice City’s sales.
Yet, don’t underestimate Vice City’s influence. The game is an exceptional one that builds perfectly on what GTA 3 introduced. It added a more dynamic protagonist and a cool ’80s vibe.
For a while, each main entry in the GTA series kept doing better than the last, but that stopped with Grand Theft Auto 4. Based on current records, GTA 4 didn’t do quite as well as San Andreas. That said, the numbers are so close that if we had updated data, GTA 4 may be in front. Regardless, GTA 4 was still very successful,selling 25 million units.
It earned every single one of those sales for being a very compelling open-world game. The story and tone are generally more serious in this game than the others, which serves as a nice change of pace.
The Grand Theft Auto series was on an unbelievable run during the early 2000s, as the series gradually grew in popularity. This run was capped off by San Andreas, which managed tosell 27.5 million copies. Not only did this make it the best-selling GTA game by this point, but it was also among the highest-selling PS2 games ever.
That is an impressive feat for an impressive game. The title is built on the formula established with GTA 3 and Vice City. Yet, this one is set in the ’90s and revolves around gang warfare. The aesthetic in this one is brilliant, as are the characters and storytelling.
People may have grown tired of GTA 5’s constant re-releases on different systems, but it’s hard to argue with its success. After all, Grand Theft Auto 5 hassold 215 million units. That is an unbelievable number that is far more than every other GTA game in history. In fact, it’s more than all of the other entries in the series combined, which is why it’s one ofthe best-selling games ever.
Along with selling a large number of copies, the game has also provided a great deal of entertainment. The characters, writing, and open world are all fantastic. Some elements of gameplay have aged a bit, but combat and driving are still solid.
