GTA 1 Guide Home

GameGrand Theft Auto (1997), top-down action game from DMA Design, published by BMG Interactive
CitiesLiberty City (with New Guernsey), San Andreas, Vice City
Chapters6, two per city
Missions90 in total: 24 in Liberty City, 34 in San Andreas, 32 in Vice City
Kill Frenzies70 in total, counted as “secrets found” on each chapter’s stats screen
Lives5 at the start of each chapter
GoalReach the chapter’s target score, then go to the ending meeting
CharactersEight to choose from at the start; the choice changes nothing in play

Grand Theft Auto is a top-down crime game in which you earn points, not just finish missions. Each chapter has a target score. You take jobs from payphones and from parked cars, multiply your pay with every job you finish, and when you reach the target you drive to the ending meeting to close the chapter. This guide walks you through all six chapters in the order that works best and lists every secret on the way.

Box art of the original Grand Theft Auto

How this guide is organized

Start with the walkthrough for the recommended route through all six chapters, or open a chapter page for its jobs in detail. The chapter pages give each job’s brief, its reward and the route. If you want everything, follow the 100% checklist, and read points and multipliers before your first chapter, because scoring is the whole game.

Two payphones on the Southwest Park pavement with red arrows above them

The six chapters

ChapterCityBossTarget
Gangsta BangLiberty CityBubby, Vercotti Crime Family1,000,000
Heist AlmightyLiberty CityBubby, Vercotti Crime Family2,000,000
Mandarin MayhemSan AndreasUncle Fu2,000,000
Tequila SlammerSan AndreasEl Burro3,000,000
Bent Cop BluesVice CitySamuel Deever3,000,000
Rasta BlastaVice CitySamuel Deever, then Brother Marcus5,000,000
Chapter art for Gangsta Bang, the first Liberty City chapter

Collectibles and reference pages

Before you start

Pick any character; they play identically. Chapters unlock in order, and you cannot choose a city until you have finished the one before it. The game saves only when a chapter ends, so a long session that ends in game over is lost. Read saving and lives first, then go to the walkthrough.