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After being leaked, then confirmed, and then associated with worrisome decisions on Rockstar’s part,Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy — The Definitive Editionwas released to one of the most notable cases of negative reception in recent gaming history. To manyGrand Theft Autofans,especially those on Metacritic, the remastered versions of three of the most popular and important video games of all time are remastered in name only.
The disdain felt by fans forGrand Theft Auto: The Trilogy — The Definitive Editionis mostly related to technical reasons, such as streamlined “polishing,” cartoonish character models, and glitches that were never in the original games to begin with. One iconic aspect of the games absent in the remastered trilogy is the removal of several songs from the radio stations. Not only are players unable to consistently explore the world as they please without encountering performance issues, they are also deprived from several classic songs that used to be present in eachGrand Theft Autosoundtrack.
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Significance of Grand Theft Auto’s Radio Stations
If playing as a morally ambiguous, if not downright depraved criminal isGrand Theft Auto’s bread and butter, listening to the various radio stations while driving a stolen vehicle is the series’ equivalent to fine wine. Despite the trashy nature of most of the radio hosts and their content, the radio stations that werespearheaded byGrand Theft Auto 3are a recurring element in the series that enriches the overall experience.
UntilGrand Theft Auto 5, original tracks had limited use in this series.San Andreas’ iconic title theme song was the exception to the rule. One of the reasons why theGrand Theft Autoseries, particularly the third game in this context, was so innovative is because of the risk it took with its soundtrack. Original pieces were the gaming norm beforeGrand Theft Auto 3came out, and twenty years later, they still are. However,Grand Theft Auto 3took a huge risk that ultimately paid off.
AGrand Theft Autosoundtrack that mostly consists of licensed songsfrom a plethora of artists is difficult to secure the rights for, but the costs of licensing music have a chance of jeopardizing the work’s budget.Grand Theft Auto 3showed that such a feat was not only possible, but sometimes necessary to shape a game’s identity.
The licensed songs accompanied a posse of hosts with their unique quirks and desires. Most of them seldom appear in person, if they even have a physical appearance, but their monologues were enough for players to get a kick out of them. Some of the hosts, such as Fernando Martinez andLazlow Jones, eventually became recurring characters in their own right.
Calling theGrand Theft Autogames realistic is a stretch, especially with the games’ occasionally ridiculous physics andEaster eggs, but the radio stations were a form of immersion unlike anything else at the time. They grounded the games in reality to an extent, and made the series’ fictional universe relatable through tracks players might have listened to themselves. This is especially important forVice CityandSan Andreas: These games aimed to be period pieces with a few creative liberties taken. The radio stations’ songs were one of the best ways to live to Rockstar’s intentions.
Songs Missing from Vice City
Thankfully forGrand Theft Auto 3fans, the remastered version kept all the same songs. The same thing can’t be said forGrand Theft Auto: Vice CityorSan Andreas. The removal of songs fromVice Cityis especially disappointing due to the soundtrack’s acclaim as one of the best in the medium.
Songs Missing from San Andreas
If the treatment thatVice City’s soundtrrack received was disappointing, thenGrand Theft Auto: San Andreassuffered due to the sheer number of songs that were removed.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Editionis available now for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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