Grand Theft Auto III – The Definitive Edition Reviews

After so many years, for the first time I decided to play this game but in the definitive edition and I must admit that it was an unforgettable experience, I believe that at the time of release this was a top tier video game both in terms of story and challenges

One of the greatest games of all times. When it came, it changed EVERYTHING, and I mean EVERYTHING. Freedom was real in a game. Is it enjoyable nowadays? Not really. I mean, you can have fun, but you can see it is 24 years old.

They fixed it - Don't listen to others! Waited awhile to purchase GTA 3 due to owning the Switch version and knowing the 'Definitive Edition' was a mess, however Rockstar (or whoever they farmed the game out to) have fixed all the issues that plagued the original release. The game itself ran flawlessly at 1440p / 120hz and I encounter ZERO crashes / errors that were in the shameful Switch version. Definitely worth a purchase!

there's too many bugs like there is too many much of gangsters in streets, fly without any reason with your car sometimes. that is what i get in the game

Ahh... the nostalgia with this one. I remember playing this daily and causing chaos everywhere I went, doing missions, repainting cars until getting the color I want, cruising around and overall feeling of mostly Portland. As for the graphics they were great too, in the original at least. While yes, GTA III Definitive Edition is a remaster, but when it comes to graphics I'm not sure if it's an upgrade or downgrade. Some things look actually improved, some things looks worse, for others it feels like their souls were removed just to stay as an empty shell, which does ruin vibes and immersion into this story at least for me, although not that often. As for the rain effect it was horrendously ugly, as soon as it started to rain I would just go afk waiting for it to stop. They have patched it and made it look way better then it was after launch, but before or after the patch, when it rains my performance drops by tiny bit, which can be noticeable at times by ruining your enjoyment of this game. Most vehicles hit boxes are still bigger than the actual vehicle, making you hit ghosts, who immediately retaliate against you. So while the remaster isn't the best, but at the same time it's not the worst either. Game does show off it's age and it's alright, what matters is if you, yourself enjoying it or not and sure as hell I did. Overall this game for me is a gem. Even now after completing it and writing this review I think, and look back at it fondly. Price wise I would recommend only getting it on sale. 10/10

I appreciate this game got a lot of bad press when it released, but having just finished it, I really can't see what the complaining is all about. This is a faithful remaster to the original that played well with no crashes on my Steam Deck from start to finish. I had an immensely good time with this game and it was good tor relive some old memories. Short by today's standard and the modern controls make the games missions an absolute breeze, this was still a somewhat enjoyable experience that is still good fun to mess around on today. I got this discounted and I am very happy with this entry for the money I paid ~£8. The inclusion of achievements, mission restarts and the other Quality of Life improvements make this ideal for playing. I would well recommend to old and new players alike....at the discounted price. Ran perfectly on Steam Deck.

GTA III is a revolutionary classic brought back to life with some modern tweaks. While it has flaws that stem both from the original game and some questionable remastering choices, it’s still a decent way to experience this iconic game—especially on sale. ------------------------------------------------------- 🔹 Story Quality: A simple but compelling story of revenge and rising through the criminal underworld. Memorable missions and characters, even if dated in its storytelling. 🔹 Story Depth: Solid structure for its time, but doesn’t offer much complexity compared to later games in the series. 🎮 Controls: A much-improved aiming system makes combat far more manageable. General movement is smoother than the original but still clunky by today’s standards. 🌍 Immersiveness: Liberty City still feels alive with its gritty atmosphere and chaotic NPC behavior. Dated visuals and AI upscaling hurt the overall immersion at times. ⚔️ Difficulty: Some missions retain their frustrating difficulty spikes from the original. The improved aiming system helps reduce unnecessary challenge in gunfights. 🗺 Level Design: The city design is still iconic, with plenty of memorable locations. Mission design holds up well, though occasional lack of direction can feel frustrating. 🎨 Graphics: AI-upscaled textures are hit-or-miss, with some looking downright terrible. Still better than the original visuals, but not by much. 🎵 Sound and Soundtrack: The radio stations and iconic soundtrack remain a highlight. Audio quality holds up, though it’s not dramatically improved. 🕹 Gameplay: Classic open-world chaos with modern tweaks, like better aiming and a functional map screen. Bugs can hinder the experience at times but don’t ruin it completely. 🐛 Bugs: Some performance issues for what should be a visually light game. Occasional glitches that feel more like a remaster problem than an original one. ⌛ Playtime: 10-20 hours to complete the main story and plenty more if you’re into collectibles and wreaking havoc. 🔁 Replayability: A nostalgic trip worth revisiting, though the dated design means it’s less appealing for multiple playthroughs. 💰 Price: Decent value if on sale, but harder to recommend at full price. The Good Stuff: ✅ A more playable version of a revolutionary classic. ✅ Improved aiming system and quality-of-life upgrades like a proper map screen. ✅ The charm and nostalgia of Liberty City still hold up. ✅ Iconic soundtrack and radio stations remain top-tier. The Bad Stuff: ❌ Performance issues for what should be a lightweight remaster. ❌ AI upscaled textures often look poor and hurt the visual quality. ❌ Retains some frustrating aspects of the original (e.g., mission difficulty spikes). ------------------------------------------------------- Conclusion: GTA III’s remaster doesn’t hit every mark, but it’s still a decent way to experience the game that redefined open-world gaming. The modern improvements make it more accessible, though the dated design and inconsistent remastering may frustrate some players. If it’s on sale, grab it and enjoy the ride through Liberty City—just don’t expect perfection.

I'm not going to recommend this game. You should only play it if you can no longer play the original version or if you want achievements in a classic game. It's just like that, nothing got improved, the graphics are supposed to be "enhanced" but it feels like you just downloaded some half asked mods to make it look "better". Nothing about this is "remastered". Some basic code could have been adjusted to make the gameplay a little bit more enjoyable. But I guess fans don't deserve that. It was nice and nostalgic to play it again on a modern system, without fiddling with it. But if nostalgia is not a factor for you, then you just gonna get frustrated on how outdated it is.

[h1]TL;DR[/h1] [b]Buy it on sale.[/b] The game is challenging and fun. It's completely playable, and I haven't encountered any bugs. [b]It keeps the essence of the OG[/b] while adding QoL features. [b]Some graphics are a bit ugly[/b]. [quote]⚠️ [b][u]You can't Family Share this game[/u][/b] (even though the store page says otherwise) because [b]it forces you to use the crappy Rockstar Launcher.[/b] I hate launchers, especially this one.[/quote] [h1]Background[/h1] [b]This was my first PS2 game as a kid[/b]. Later, I played it a lot on PC [b]with mods[/b]. [b]I still prefer the OG[/b] for some minor details, but [b]let's be honest:[/b] [u]the OG is practically unplayable without over 15 mods.[/u] [b]The game is no longer a mess;[/b] Rockstar has [b]fixed [/b]most of the [b]release bugs[/b] and graphical issues. [b]So the remaster is great[/b]. It keeps the [b]OG spirit[/b] and significantly [b]improves the gameplay.[/b] Some improvements I've noticed include:[list] [*]No loading screens between islands [i](you can see everything from far away!)[/i] [*]Fixed the controls [i](trust me, the OG PC controls were a nightmare)[/i] [*]Purple 9 bug fix [i](this bug would prevent you from completing certain missions)[/i] [*]They added a map [i](yeah, the OG didn't have a map)[/i] [*]GTA V style weapon wheel [i](it's useful)[/i] [*]Checkpoints/Autosave [i](a bit useless, imho, if you save often)[/i][/list] Things I [b]DON'T[/b] like:[list] [*]The game [b]forces you[/b] to use the Rockstar launcher [i](it's a crap)[/i] [*]They removed the Portland gray atmosphere [i](everything is way too colorful now, instead of the moody, sad vibe)[/i] [*]They removed some minor environmental details [*]You can't change the controls [*]The map/minimap doesn't display narrow streets properly [*]Family Share doesn't work: [b][u]THE STORE PAGE IS MISLEADING[/u][/b][/list] [h1]Gameplay[/h1] The [b]game was released[/b] in [b]2001[/b], and in [b]2002 [/b]we got [i]Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.[/i] As you might expect, [i]Grand Theft Auto III[/i] served as a [b]testing ground[/b] for what would come next in the series. It's a pretty basic game: [b]there are no motorbikes[/b] (in [i]Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories,[/i] they explain this by saying that [b]motorbikes are banned,[/b] so within the lore it makes sense, though it's still kind of funny). And the story is pretty simple. Plus, [b]most of the QoL[/b] seen in later releases [b]are missing.[/b] Because of all this, [u]people complain that it's an incomplete remaster,[/u] but honestly, I think it's a [b]smart choice.[/b] It [b]PRESERVES[/b] the essence of the OG, just with [b]modern controls.[/b] Remember, [b]this is a [u]REMASTER[/u], not a [u]REMAKE[/u].[/b] Also [b]for me,[/b] this game is [b]even harder[/b] than [i]San Andreas[/i]. [b]The gangs will punish you severely,[/b] so it's [u]highly recommended[/u] to complete most [b]side objectives[/b] [i](like hidden packages or paramedic)[/i] before progressing with the main story. I don't know if it's just me, but [b]it seems like this remaster has a lot more gang NPC roaming around.[/b] Your car will explode with just a few random shots. [b]Even water kills you![/b] Some missions, like [b]"Kingdom Come"[/b] or [b]"S.A.M."[/b], [u]will mostly[/u] make newcomers [b]cry[/b] or even [b]uninstall the game.[/b] [h1]Conclusion[/h1] [b]I definitely recommend this game, but only if it's on sale.[/b] It's challenging and fun, with some of the [b]most iconic NPC quotes in the whole franchise.[/b] If you enjoy tough, oldschool gameplay and memorable moments, you'll have a blast. Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the game, just for the lulz:[list] [*]“Somebody call a ME-dic?!” [i]— Triad[/i] [*]“No money, mo' problems” [i]— Triad[/i] [*]“My mother is my sister”[i] — Man in the olive coat[/i] [*]“You think that's bad? I've been revived 240 times” [i]— Guy in the blue shirt and cap[/i] [*]“What are you doing, giving birth?”[i] — Man in the olive coat[/i] [*]“Yep, I've been drinking again”[i] — Man in the olive coat[/i] [*]“It's baby fat; I haven't lost it yet”[i] — Lady with pink hair and blue dress[/i] [*]“In the navy”[i] — Construction worker[/i][/list] https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3418070479

---{Graphics}--- ☐ You forget what reality is ☐ Beautiful ☐ Good ☐ Decent ☑ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ Free Fire ---{Gameplay}--- ☐ Very good ☐ Good ☑ It‘s just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{Audio}--- ☐ Eargasm ☐ Very good ☐ Good ☑ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{Audience}--- ☐ Kids ☑ Teens ☑ Adults ☐ All ---{PC Requirements}--- ☐ Check if you can run paint ☑ Potato ☐ Decent ☐ Fast ☐ Rich boi ☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer ---{Difficulty}--- ☐ Just press 'W' ☐ Easy ☑ Significant brain usage ☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master ☐ Difficult ☐ Dark Souls ---{Grind}--- ☐ Nothing to grind ☑ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks ☐ Isn't necessary to progress ☐ Average grind level ☐ Too much grind ☐ You‘ll need a second live for grinding ---{Story}--- ☐ No Story ☑ Some lore ☐ Average ☐ Good ☐ Lovely ☐ It‘ll replace your life ---{Game Time}--- ☐ Really short ( 0 - 2 hours) ☑ Short ( 2 - 8 hours) ☐ Few hours ( 8 - 12 hours) ☐ Not bad duration ( 12 - 20 hours) ☐ Long ( 20 - 50 hours) ☐ Too long ( 50 - 100 hours) ☐ Endless ---{Price}--- ☐ It’s free! ☐ Worth the price ☑ If it's on sale ☐ If u have some spare money left ☐ Not recommended ☐ You could also just burn your money ---{Bugs}--- ☐ Never heard of ☑ Minor bugs ☐ Can get annoying ☐ Cyberpunk 2077 ☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs ---{70/100}---