Few game franchises can claim to be as influential in the video game industry as Grand Theft Auto. The legendary and controversial series, which began in a small makeshift office in an attic, is turning 20 years old this month. So what better time than now to look back at such a long history?
One of the first interesting bits of trivia regarding GTA begins right at the very beginning — namely, no-one knows when it was exactly. At least, no one can back up claims with any kind of source. It is known that the very first GTA game was released in early October 1997, but which exact day in early October is not known.
A version of the first GTA game was released on the 12th of October that year, however that wasn't the initial version — it was a regional launch following the initial one, which logically happened sometime between the 1st and 11th of October. So for all we know, we've already passed the day of the 20th anniversary.
GTA didn't quite catch on though until the third game brought the franchise into the 3D age. However the most recent title, Grand Theft Auto V, gave the IP such an explosive boost in exposure and players that the majority of people who'd call themselves "GTA Fans" may very well only have played with 5, or played it first and then retroactively tried out older titles.
However, the international entertainment juggernaut that is GTA today, and Rockstar Games, the company behind it, were both very, very different at the beginning, and even before the beginning. While the first game was released in October 1997, the story of the IP begins earlier, and with a very different name.
In January 1995 a small game development company called DMA design, which would later morph into Rockstar Games through acquisitions and rebrandings, began planning a game which would use a unique pre-drawn graphics method, and would focus on top-down multiplayer racing with some combat mechanics.
Over time, this plan was refined and expanded in scope to include on-foot sections, and a greater focus on combat. This game was christened Race'n'Chase, and development officially began on the 4th of April, 1995 (funny, we know exactly when development began, but not when the game hit the shelves).






