It’s hard to believe that in three short years, Rockstar Games popularized and perfected the open-world video game. In 2001, Grand Theft Auto III successfully translated the top-down chaos of the original two crime games into 3D for the first time, creating a cultural phenomenon in the process. The following year, the developers added glitzy pizzazz and 80’s nostalgia to an already winning formula with Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
To complete the hat-trick, Rockstar Games could’ve hit an easy lay-up. Some minor improvements and a gimmicky new feature would’ve sufficed and sold millions. Instead, Rockstar went up to bat and hit a grand slam. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, released 20 years ago today, took what its two predecessors did so well and expanded on it in ways no one saw coming. It’s a sequel so jam-packed with new features, crazy one-off ideas, and memorable moments, it remains a touchstone in video game history a generation later. San Andreas is the sequel of gamers’ wildest dreams and one of the most influential games in the open-world genre.
