You’ve probably spent hundreds of hours behind the wheel in Los Santos or Liberty City without ever stopping to wonder what year it actually is. It’s a weird thing to think about. Most of us just jump in, steal a Banshee, and start causing chaos. But if you actually sit down and try to map out the grand theft auto games timeline, things get complicated fast.
It isn't a straight line. Not even close.
Rockstar Games didn't just release these games in order and call it a day. Instead, they’ve split the entire franchise into three distinct "universes" that don't officially overlap. You’ve got the 2D Era, the 3D Era, and the HD Era. If you try to argue that Claude from GTA III is the same guy hanging out in the background of GTA V, you’re gonna have a bad time at the next fan convention. They are separate realities.
The Three Universes and Why They Matter
Basically, the 2D universe is the prehistoric age. We're talking the original GTA, London 1969, and GTA 2. These games are top-down, pixelated, and honestly? A little hard to play by today's standards. They exist in their own bubble.
Then came the 3D Era. This is the one that defined childhoods. Starting with GTA III in 2001 and ending with San Andreas and the Stories spin-offs, this era follows a specific continuity. It’s where we met icons like Tommy Vercetti and CJ.
Finally, we have the HD Era. This started with Niko Bellic stepping off a boat in 2008’s GTA IV. This universe is more grounded, grittier, and way more detailed. It includes GTA V and the upcoming GTA VI. Characters from the 3D Era simply do not exist here as living people—they might show up on a billboard or a stray Easter egg, but they aren't part of the "real" history of this world.
Mapping the 3D Era: The 1980s to the Early 2000s
If you want to play the grand theft auto games timeline in chronological order for the 3D Era, you have to start in the neon-soaked streets of 1984.
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1984: Vice City Stories
This is a prequel to the main Vice City game. You play as Victor Vance. He’s a guy trying to do right by his family who gets sucked into the drug trade. It’s a tragic story because, if you’ve played the follow-up, you know exactly what happens to Vic at the start of the next game.
1986: Vice City
Two years later, Tommy Vercetti gets out of prison and heads south. This is peak 80s aesthetic. Hawaiian shirts. Cocaine. Synth-pop. It’s arguably the most atmospheric game in the series. Tommy builds an empire that, as far as we know in this timeline, he still runs.
1992: San Andreas
Fast forward six years. We move from the East Coast to the West Coast. Carl Johnson (CJ) returns to Los Santos for his mother’s funeral. This game is massive. It covers three cities—Los Santos, San Fierro, and Las Venturas. By the end of 1992, CJ is a mogul, having dismantled the corrupt C.R.A.S.H. unit led by Frank Tenpenny.
1998: Liberty City Stories
Back to the dark, rainy streets of Liberty City. Toni Cipriani is the protagonist here, working for the Leone crime family. It sets the stage for the chaos that happens three years later.
2001: Grand Theft Auto III
The game that changed everything. Claude is betrayed by his girlfriend, Catalina (who we met in San Andreas), and spends the game working his way through the Liberty City underworld to get revenge. It’s the "end" of the 3D timeline's major narrative arc.
The HD Era: A Modern Legend
When Rockstar moved to the HD Era, they hit the reset button. They wanted a world that felt more like our own.
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2008: Grand Theft Auto IV
Niko Bellic arrives in Liberty City looking for the "American Dream." He finds out it’s a lie. The game takes place in 2008 and is significantly darker than anything that came before it. The expansions, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony, happen simultaneously with Niko’s story. It's a crowded, messy year in Liberty City history.
2009: Chinatown Wars
Set just a year after IV, this follows Huang Lee. It’s a return to the top-down perspective but remains firmly in the HD universe. It’s a smaller story about family honor and a stolen sword, but it adds flavor to the Liberty City we thought we knew.
2013: Grand Theft Auto V
The behemoth. Michael, Franklin, and Trevor tear through Los Santos in 2013. This game is unique because the online component, GTA Online, actually started as a prequel set months before the main story but has since moved forward in time. As of 2024 and 2025 updates, the online world is technically further along in the timeline than the original story mode.
2025/2026: Grand Theft Auto VI
We know from the trailers that we are heading back to Leonida (Florida). The timeline is moving into the mid-2020s. We’ll be seeing social media parodies, TikTok-style clips, and a modern-day take on the Vice City area. It’s the next logical step in the grand theft auto games timeline.
The "Red Dead" Connection: Is It All Linked?
People love a good conspiracy theory. There’s a popular one that suggests Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto share a timeline.
They don't.
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Dan Houser and other Rockstar leads have been pretty clear: they are separate franchises. However, fans point to the book "Red Dead" written by a J. Marston found on Franklin's bookshelf in GTA V. It’s a fun nod. It’s an Easter egg. But Jack Marston did not grow up to be the great-great-grandfather of a Los Santos car thief. The geography doesn't match, and the "vibe" of history is different.
Technical Reality vs. Narrative Flow
Working on these games is a nightmare for continuity editors. Think about the radio stations. In GTA: Vice City, the music is all 80s because that’s when it’s set. But in GTA Online, you have modern DJs and tracks from the 2020s. If you’re a lore nerd, you have to accept that the "world" evolves even if the map stays roughly the same.
The 3D Era and HD Era versions of Liberty City and Los Santos are literally different sizes. The HD Los Santos is gargantuan compared to the PS2-era version. In the world of the game, you’re supposed to imagine these are the same places, just "re-imagined" for better hardware. It’s a bit of a meta-timeline shift.
Making Sense of the Chaos
If you're looking to actually play through these to understand the story, don't go by release date. Go by the internal years.
Start with Vice City Stories (1984), then Vice City (1986). Move to San Andreas (1992). Then hit Liberty City Stories (1998) and finish that block with GTA III (2001).
Then, take a deep breath and jump to the HD world. Start with GTA IV and its DLCs (2008), then Chinatown Wars (2009). Finally, play GTA V (2013) and spend some time in GTA Online to see the world transition into the 2020s.
It's a wild ride. You see the evolution of American satire as much as the evolution of gaming tech. The early games poked fun at 80s excess. The middle games took on the 90s gang culture and the early 2000s post-9/11 anxiety. The modern games are a brutal mirror of our current obsession with fame and social media.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Players
- Check the Wiki for Radio Lore: Much of the timeline's "world-building" happens in the news broadcasts on the radio. If you listen closely in GTA IV, you’ll hear mentions of events that set up GTA V.
- Don't Overthink the Maps: Accept that the geography changes between eras. There is no logical way to connect the PS2 maps to the PS4/PS5 maps without losing your mind.
- Watch for Recurring Characters: While major protagonists don't cross universes, some minor "joke" characters do. Lazlow Jones is a prime example. He appears in almost every game, evolving from a nervous intern to a burnt-out media personality. Tracking his career is the easiest way to feel the passage of time across the games.
- Prepare for Leonida: Before GTA VI drops, re-playing Vice City is the best way to appreciate how much the "timeline" version of that city has expanded and changed over forty in-game years.