PlayStation Plus subscribers who have enjoyed Grand Theft Auto III: The Definitive Edition since June now face a deadline of December 16 to complete their playthroughs without owning the game.

The remastered version of Grand Theft Auto III, released in 2021 as part of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition, previously enjoyed around six months in the PS Plus catalog alongside its sibling titles. That window has now closed, and this exit aligns with past patterns.

If you head to the “Last Chance to Play” section in the PlayStation Store, you will find GTA III listed among eight other departing titles. Perhaps by design, the game that started it all for the franchise is now leaving just as the best-selling title in the series' history is joining the subscription service.

What does this mean for players? If you want to experience GTA III under your PS Plus tier, you will need to launch it before mid-December. After that date, the game disappears from that catalog slot, and you’ll need to purchase it or access it via other services. It’s worth noting that GTA III also appears via GTA+ on mobile and console platforms, giving an alternative route for players who miss the PS Plus cut-off.

If you’ve grown attached to revisiting Claude’s journey through Liberty City, you should plan to play before the date passes. After that, you may still have options, including a fully working Dreamcast port, but you’ll lose the “included in your tier” convenience.

Though it faced criticism at launch, GTA 3 continues to represent the series’ shift into 3D open worlds and effectively was when the studio became close partners with Sony after Microsoft whiffed a deal to secure Grand Theft Auto for the then-young Xbox platform. While the Definitive Edition version had its issues, especially at launch, it brought the classic to modern hardware and new players. Team Bondi, which later became Rockstar Australia, has since fixed the said problems.

So, what are you waiting for? Liberty City might not be like Vice City, but this is a good chance to revisit what started it all for GTA while waiting for Grand Theft Auto 6 and the next Grand Theft Auto Online update.