GTA clone is a term used by video game critics and players to refer to the many titles released following the massive success of Grand Theft Auto III (GTA III) in 2001, which emulated, or at least attempted to, the gameplay functions of GTA III or other later games from the Grand Theft Auto series. Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a universal phenomenon. ... Grand Theft Auto III (sometimes abbreviated as GTA III or GTA3) is an action computer and video game developed by DMA Design (now Rockstar North), published by Rockstar Games in October 2001 for the PlayStation 2 video game console, May 2002 for Windows-based personal computers, and in November 2003... The current design of the Grand Theft Auto logo. ...

History

Many critics note the release of Grand Theft Auto III as a revolutionary event in the history of videogames, much like the release of Doom nearly a decade earlier.^[1] Rather than inventing new forms of gameplay, the Grand Theft Auto series combined existing elements and fused them together into an entirely new experience (however, some critics believe that accolade should go to DMA Design's earlier, less-popular game Body Harvest, of which GTA III itself is a clone). The free-roaming world, intense violence, criminal plotline, and freedom of choice found in GTA III was extremely popular. Such as the case with Doom, game developers quickly began to "clone" the game style of GTA. Home video-game systems became popular during the 1970s and 80s. ... Doom (or DOOM)[1] is a 1993 computer game by id Software that is among the landmark titles in the first-person shooter genre. ... A decade is a set or a group of ten, commonly a period of 10 years in contemporary English, or a period of 10 days in the French revolutionary calendar. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Some of these "clones" offered original gameplay scenarios and attempted to create their own interpretation of the "free-roam" gameplay of GTA. However, others simply attempted to capitalize on the success of GTA, and "borrowed" wholesale from the gameplay (free roam environment, ability to use any vehicle/weapon, etc.), story (generally criminal in nature, full of seedy characters), and themes found in GTA, without offering anything new.

Game critics are often quick to label a game "GTA clone", and as such, it is often used in a derogatory way (See this review for an example). Nearly any game that employs a free-roaming game structure in the third-person style is bound to be compared to GTA, no matter how dissimilar they are to GTA. However, similar labeling occurred to many first-person shooters that were released following Doom. This does not cite its references or sources. ... Doom is considered a landmark in the first-person shooter genre. ...

More recently, the term "Sandbox" has been used to refer to free-roam games in the same style as GTA. This term is becoming increasingly common in videogame criticism as the genre establishes itself as more than just a "GTA clone". GTA: San Andreas is a sandbox-style game with a huge free-roaming map. ...

Games considered GTA clones

• 24: The Game (2005): Based off of the popular FOX television series, this game's storyline filled in gaps left in between the second and third seasons. It was originally designed to have an open ended sandbox style option but was cancelled and redone. It bears similarity to a "GTA Clone" in the aspect that the player, a government agent, Jack Bauer, can exit vehicles and commandeer civilians' in order to travel across Los Angeles. It was well received by critics for its plot, just as gripping as the show, and amount cast and crew involvement from the show. But the game was considered to have "terrible gameplay mechanics" and felt "too rushed".
• Payback (2001): Considered a clone of the original, top-down games in the GTA series. Originally developed for high-end Amigas and eventually ported to the Apple Macintosh and Game Boy Advance, the aim during development of Payback was, in the author's own words, "to ensure that Payback beats GTA in every way."
• The Getaway (2002) and The Getaway: Black Monday (2004): "GTA in England". Had the advantages of having a real location (London) and real cars but the controls and vehicle handling were generally considered to be average. Sales were good though. The Getaway 3 is to be released on PS3.
• Mafia (2002): A free-roaming action/driving game set in a fictional 1930s city plagued with organized crime, Mafia garnered wide critical acclaim when originally released on PC. However, when ported to consoles the game lost much of its appeal (including worsened graphics and gameplay and very long loading times) and, according to IGN, "GTA it is not".^[2]
• Jak II (2003): The sequel to the vastly different Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy, taking place in a dystopian fantasy world in which the player is able to steal various hovering vehicles, operate firearms, and get in trouble with law enforcement. A large city serves as a hub area from where the player can receive missions and explore. However, Jak II is strictly more of a platforming game than an action one.
• The Simpsons Hit & Run (2003): A game based on The Simpsons that incorporates many of the open-ended themes of GTA III (Chief Wiggum even says, "What is this? Grand Theft Auto? Get outta there!"). Perhaps the first licensed GTA clone, and among the first Simpsons games to be well-received by critics.
• True Crime: Streets of LA (2003) and True Crime: New York City (2005): Although Streets of LA was well-received by critics as a strong rival of GTA,^[3][4] its sequel received mixed reviews.^[5]
• DRIV3R (2004) and Driver: Parallel Lines (2006): In a somewhat ironic twist, the last two games in the Driver series have been labelled "GTA clones", however, it was the Driver franchise that actually pioneered the 3-D free-roaming game structure before GTA III; two Driver titles under this design were released before GTA III. DRIV3R was received poorly (see: DRIV3R - Reviews and criticism), and Parallel Lines was met with mixed critical reception.
• Spider-Man 2 (2004): Based on the movie of the same name it features a large, free-roaming Manhattan
• The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction (2005): Although the game did not directly mimic the GTA formula of driving cars and using firearms, it did borrow the series' "go anywhere, do anything" philosophy and similarly used it as in Spider-Man 2, allowing players, controlling the Hulk, to run rampant through a virtual city, picking up, throwing, or smashing objects, vehicles, and people as they see fit. Ultimate Destruction even featured a Military Response Team that hunts down the Hulk after a certain amount of mayhem, similar in function to the police response in GTA.
• Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction (2005): A third person shooting game set during a war in North Korea, in a sandbox world. The game was received extremely well, partly because of it's GTA style sandbox environment opposed to usual restricted environments in the war genre. A sequel, titled Mercenaries 2: World in Flames and set in Venezuela, is to be released on PC, PS2, PS3 and Xbox 360 later this year.
• Destroy All Humans! (2005): Much like Mercenaries (the two games were developed by Pandemic Studios), Destroy All Humans! uses the gameplay structure of GTA but changes setting: the main character is an alien invading Earth. 1UP.com points out that the premise is 'GTA meets aliens'.^[6] Overall, despite some complaints about it being too linear, the game was well-received by critics.^[7]
• Total Overdose: A Gunslinger's Tale in Mexico (2005): Total Overdose doesn't borrow elements from just the Grand Theft Auto series; IGN says Total Overdose "is best described as a combination of Grand Theft Auto meets Max Payne, with a little Desperado or Once Upon a Time in Mexico thrown into the recipe to add some flavor."^[8] In her X-Play review, Morgan Webb describes Total Overdose as a "totally generic, totally average, Grand Theft Auto clone."
• Just Cause (2006): Just Cause, a videogame from Eidos Interactive, utilizes the expansive free-roam world as does GTA, only set on a tropical island with the player acting as a secret agent. In its initial announcement of the game, IGN asks "Grand Theft Island, anyone?"^[9] However, in an interview, game developer Odd Ahlgren denies that the game is simply "Far Cry meets Grand Theft Auto".^[10]
• The Godfather: The Game (2006): This game marks EA's first attempt at the open-world crime genre. The Godfather: The Game uses the open-world structure within the story of The Godfather movies. In Edge, a UK games magazine, The Godfather: The Game is accused of treating the players like children, and is hailed as 'a landmark failure', receiving a mark of 4/10.
• Saints Row (2006): Saint's Row for the Xbox 360 has been named as one of the most blatant copies of the Grand Theft Auto games. IGN asks, "How can they so indiscreetly copy GTA?"^[11] while 1UP says, "Everything about it apes Grand Theft Auto to such a degree that we'll never again be able to call anything else a 'GTA clone', just because it's not really possible that anything else will ever so brazenly imitate the thing."^[12]. However, the game received high marks from reviewers and was lauded for improving on a number of aspects of GTA's gameplay in the transition to the next-generation console. The game ended up becoming a success selling over 1.4 million units and a sequel is scheduled to be released, Saints Row 2. ^[13]
• Scarface: The World Is Yours (2006): Based on the movie Scarface, Scarface: The World Is Yours uses the same game style as GTA. In fact, IGN says, "Much of Scarface is based on what we've seen in Grand Theft Auto. In fact, it's fairly obvious that Radical used said series as the blueprint..."^[14] Ironically, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was heavily based upon and influenced by the movie Scarface.
• A number of games jumped onto the "street gang" theme popularized by Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and attempted to emulate the success of that game by employing the "gangsta" image. However, games like 187 Ride or Die (2005), 25 to Life (2006) and Crime Life: Gang Wars (2005) were met with negative reviews and were generally ignored by the gaming public.^[15].
• Other, non-shooting or driving games that utilize the free roam game structure include Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions (2002),Bratz: Rock Angelz (2005) (which one of the reviews even called "GTA for girls"^[16]), Bratz: Forever Diamondz (2006) and Jaws Unleashed (2006) (which IGN describes as "Grand Shark Auto"^[17]), as well as Rockstar Toronto's The Warriors and Rockstar Vancouver's Bully.
• APB, an upcoming open-ended MMORPG by the creator of the Grand Theft Auto franchise, David Jones.
• 50 Cent: Bulletproof also has a similar expression to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. 50 Cent has mentioned in an interview that he was inspired by the game.
• Bully, a game also created by Rockstar.
• GUN, most commonly billed as "GTA in the old west".

2005 2005 in games 2004 in video gaming 2006 in video gaming Notable events of 2005 in video gaming. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... This article or section on a Television-related subject may need to be cleaned up and rewritten because it describes a work of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. ... Payback is a videogame by Apex Designs. ... 2001 2001 in games 2000 in video gaming 2002 in video gaming Notable events of 2001 in video gaming. ... The original Amiga 1000 (1985) with various peripherals The Amiga is a family of personal computers originally developed by Amiga Corporation. ... The first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, upgraded to a 512K Fat Mac. The Macintosh or Mac, is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple Computer. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Getaway is a driving/shooting video game series, developed in the United Kingdom by London-based Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) subsidiary, Team SOHO, and released in December of 2002. ... The Getaway is a driving/shooting video game series, developed in the United Kingdom by London-based Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) subsidiary, Team SOHO, and released in December of 2002. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... The Getaway 3 is a the third installment of Sonys popular London-based crime franchise. ... Face The 1930s (years from 1930–1939) were described as an abrupt shift to more radical and conservative lifestyles, as countries were struggling to find a solution to the Great Depression, also known in Europe as the World Depression. ... Organized crime or criminal organizations are groups or operations run by criminals, most commonly for the purpose of generating a monetary profit. ... The Altair 8800 was among the first microcomputers to be affordable by an individual, although it initially lacked peripherals and memory. ... IGN is a multimedia news and reviews website that focuses heavily on video games. ... Jak II, called Jak II: Renegade in Europe, is a science fiction platform game developed by Naughty Dog. ... The Simpsons Hit & Run is a third-person action adventure video game based on the animated sitcom The Simpsons, and is currently the most recent in the line. ... Simpsons redirects here. ... Police Chief Clancy Wiggum (voiced by Hank Azaria) is a fictional character from the animated television series The Simpsons. ... True Crime: Streets of LA Categories: Computer and video game stubs | 2003 computer and video games | PlayStation 2 games | Xbox games | GameCube games | Activision games | Windows games ... DRIV3R or Driver 3, is a racing, shooting, and adventure video game. ... Driver is a series of mission-based driving video games for PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Game Boy Advance and PC. Developed by Reflections Interactive in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, it was originally published by GT Interactive and later by Atari. ... DRIV3R or Driver 3, is a racing, shooting, and adventure video game. ... Spider-Man 2 is the name of several computer and video games based on the Spider-Man universe and particularly the Spider-Man 2 movie. ... Manhattan is a borough of New York City, New York, USA, coterminous with New York County. ... Spider-Man 2 is the name of several computer and video games based on the Spider-Man universe and particularly the Spider-Man 2 movie. ... The Hulk (real name Dr. Robert Bruce Banner), sometimes referred to as The Incredible Hulk, is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in the Marvel Comics Universe. ... Destroy All Humans! is a video game developed by Pandemic Studios and published by THQ. It was released for Xbox and PlayStation 2 computer entertainment systems on June 21, 2005. ... Pandemic Studios is a video game developer notable for creating destructable environments that is based in Los Angeles, California and Brisbane, Australia. ... In popular fiction and conspiracy theories, life forms, especially intelligent life forms, that are of extraterrestrial origin, i. ... The alien invasion is a common theme in science fiction stories and film, in which a technologically-superior extraterrestrial society invades Earth with the intent to replace human life, or to enslave it under a colonial system, or in some cases, to use humans as food. ... 1UP.com is a video-game site owned and operated by Ziff Davis Media, the media conglomerate behind popular videogame magazines Computer Gaming World (CGW) (now known as Games for Windows: The Official Magazine (or GFW) Magazine), Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM), and the now-defunct Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine... Max Payne is a third-person shooter computer game developed by the Finnish company Remedy Entertainment, produced by 3D Realms and published by Gathering of Developers in July, 2001 for Windows. ... Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) is an action film by Robert Rodriguez and the final film in the Mariachi Trilogy, which includes El Mariachi and Desperado. ... X-Play logo X-Play (previously Gamespot TV and Extended Play) is a video game review television show hosted by Adam Sessler and Morgan Webb. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Just Cause was released on September 22, 2006 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 2 platforms in Europe. ... Eidos Interactive is a publisher of video and computer games based in the United Kingdom. ... Secret Agent is a 1936 British film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on a novel by W. Somerset Maugham. ... Far Cry is a first-person shooter computer game developed by Crytek Studios from Germany and published by Ubisoft on March 23, 2004 for Windows. ... The Godfather is an epic 1972 crime film based on the novel of the same name by Mario Puzo and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, with screenplay by Puzo and Coppola. ... Edge is a multi-format computer and video game magazine published by Future Publishing in the United Kingdom. ... Saints Row is an action-adventure video game, available for the Xbox 360. ... The Xbox 360 is the successor to Microsofts Xbox video game console, developed in cooperation with IBM, ATI, Samsung and SiS. Information on the console first came through viral marketing campaigns and it was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detailed launch and game information divulged... Saints Row 2 is an upcoming video game, scheduled to be released in 2008 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. ... Scarface is a 1983 film directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone and starring Al Pacino as Antonio Tony Montana. ... Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (released in October 2002) is the fourth video game in the hit Grand Theft Auto series. ... This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling. ... Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is the fifth video game in the Grand Theft Auto series. ... 187 Ride or Die is a video game on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. ... 25 To Life is a third-person shooter video game for Windows, PlayStation 2 and Xbox released in 2006. ... Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions is a video game on GameCube, Xbox and PlayStation 2. ... Jaws Unleashed is a 2006 video game licensed from the 1975 film Jaws. ... Rockstar Toronto (formerly Rockstar Canada) is Take-Two Interactives in-house devlopment team located in Toronto, Canada. ... The Warriors is a beat em up video game released on October 17, 2005 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. ... Rockstar Vancouver is a video game studio located in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. ... Bully, also known as Canis Canem Edit (Latin for dog eat dog) in the PAL region,[1] is a video game released by Rockstar Vancouver for Sony PlayStation 2 on October 17, 2006 in the USA, and October 25, 2006 in the UK. An Xbox version was planned but has... APB (All Points Bulletin) is an unreleased open-ended MMORPG based in urban sprawls and featuring two sides, the Squads and the Gangs. ... An image from World of Warcraft, one of the largest commercial MMORPGs as of 2004, based on active subscriptions. ... David Jones founded the computer game company Real Time Worlds in 2002. ... Screenshot of Bully Bully, as of August 2005, is a video game under development by Rockstar Vancouver for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox video game systems. ... A gun is a common name given to an object that fires high-velocity projectiles. ...

Rockstar's response

As a result of such similarities, Rockstar has placed several Easter eggs to mock the competition. A virtual Easter egg is a hidden message or feature in an object such as a movie, book, CD, DVD, computer program, or video game. ...

Billboard in GTA: San Andreas mocking True Crime: Streets of LA.

In Grand Theft Auto III, the player is tasked with a mission called "Two-Faced Tanner", where they must kill an undercover cop (that Asuka describes as "strangely animated"). This "Tanner" character is described as being "totally useless outside of his car", a reference to the uselessness of on-foot action in Driver 2. Rockstar even went as far as to give Tanner female walking animation. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x1024, 200 KB) Summary Billboard in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas mocking True Crime: Streets of LA Captured from PC version Licensing This is a screenshot of a copyrighted computer game or video game, and the copyright for it is most... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x1024, 200 KB) Summary Billboard in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas mocking True Crime: Streets of LA Captured from PC version Licensing This is a screenshot of a copyrighted computer game or video game, and the copyright for it is most... True Crime: Streets of LA Categories: Computer and video game stubs | 2003 computer and video games | PlayStation 2 games | Xbox games | GameCube games | Activision games | Windows games ... A number of recurring characters appear during the various missions or cut scenes in the video game Grand Theft Auto III, set in 2001. ... Driver 2 screenshot (PlayStation) Driver 2: The Wheelman Is Back (in the UK, Driver 2: Back on the Streets) is the second installment of the Driver video game series. ...

In Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, during the mission "Autocide", the targets that the player must kill are subtle references to the main characters of Driver 2 (Dick Tanner, after Tanner), The Getaway (Marcus Hammond and Franco Carter, after Mark Hammond and Frank Carter), and True Crime: Streets of LA (Nick Kong, after Nick Kang Wilson). DRIV3R responded by including enemies named "Timmy Vermicelli" (after Vice City protagonist Tommy Vercetti), who wore waterwings, since no one in the GTA series could swim before GTA: San Andreas. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (released in October 2002) is the fourth video game in the hit Grand Theft Auto series. ... The Getaway is a driving/shooting video game series, developed in the United Kingdom by London-based Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) subsidiary, Team SOHO, and released in December of 2002. ... Thomas Tommy Vercetti is a fictional character, voiced by Ray Liotta, in the Grand Theft Auto video game series. ... Waterwings, also called floaties and swimmies, are a device to help children float in water and learn to swim. ...

As a mockery of DRIV3R, San Andreas included a mission where, while breaking into Madd Dogg's mansion, there is a man playing a video game and making fun of the way the main character walks and asking how "Refractions" (A spoof of Reflections Interactive, the designers of the Driver series) could have "mess something up so bad" and adding "Tanner, you suck ass!". Shadow of the Beast was the first title by Reflections (screenshot on Amiga) Reflections (now Reflections Interactive) is a video game developer based in Newcastle, UK. Reflections became well known for their 1989 hit Amiga game, Shadow of the Beast, published by Psygnosis. ...

Luxoflux, makers of True Crime: Streets of L.A., also responded by putting up billboards in their game mocking the Rockstar Games logo used to advertise jockstraps around Los Angeles. In response to the "Jockstrap" billboard, another San Andreas Easter egg mocks True Crime, which was depicted on several billboards in the city of Los Santos. One mission features Ryder, before entering and robbing a house, crying "Yeah, yeah, we gotta do it ninja style," a coin phrase for the True Crime protagonist, Nick Kang. And in a cemetery in San Fierro, gravestones with "R.I.P. Opposition, 1997-2004" can be seen, as Rockstar has "killed" the opposition by releasing San Andreas. Luxoflux is an American video game developer. ... Nickname: Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: State California County Los Angeles County Incorporated April 4, 1850 Government  - Type Mayor-Council  - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa  - City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo  - Governing body City Council Area  - City  498. ... Western Los Santos is predominantly affluent, compared to the less well-to-do east side. ... View of San Fierro from The Garver Bridge San Fierro is a fictional city featured in the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, based on San Francisco, California and located in the fictional state of San Andreas. ...

Also occasionally in GTA: San Andreas a car purchased off the ship in San Fierro will have the registration plate "EA SUCKS" towards Rockstar's rival company Electronic Arts. EA redirects here. ...

See also

• Doom clone

As evinced by how frequently the terms have been used on Usenet, Doom clone was more common than first-person shooter until the late 1990s. ...

Notes