Memorable Gaming Moment 2001: Grand Theft Auto III

2001 was an amazing year for gaming; it may have been the greatest year of all time. The list of games is staggering: Final Fantasy X, Gran Turismo 3, Devil May Dry, Ico, Silent Hill 2, Jak & Daxter, Halo, Metal Gear Solid 2, Sonic Adventure 2, Twisted Metal: Black… I could go on for a while, but I don’t want to bore you. The year also gave us two brand new consoles: the Gamecube and the Xbox. It’s hard to think of a year that featured more content than 2001, but none of what I mentioned is more memorable than one key game: Grand Theft Auto III.

I was a huge fan of the Grand Theft Auto series since its PC beginnings. I personally loved the over-the-top style and found the games quite enjoyable, though I knew they weren’t anything particularly groundbreaking. That all changed the second GTA3 was revealed. The game was huge, open, and finally in three dimensions! I remember the GTA3 cover story in the now deceased OPM and I had to have read that story at least seventeen million times. I never anticipated a game this much before or since; GTA3 was the one game I would have given a nut for.

I was fifteen when it originally released and couldn’t technically buy it myself, but my dad was more than willing to pick me up a copy. I was quite happy that he did this for me as it actually sold out and was out-of-stock for at least a week, if not two. The game was absolutely amazing and I couldn’t pull myself away from the game to do anything besides pooping, peeing, sleeping, and eating (though who really needs to eat). I know that the game had its share of bugs (some of which made the game even better), but its greatness outweighed any problems like the mass of Rosie O’ Donnell on Thanksgiving in comparison to the mass of a mouse turd.

I can’t carve this statement into stone, but I’m pretty sure that GTA3 was the first game I ever “completed”. I don’t simply mean finishing the story, but finding every hidden package, every stunt and every utterly pointless objective so that I could feel proud seeing 100% Completed in the stat menu. I had no reason to do any of this, but for some reason this particular game compelled me to waste hours of my life for absolutely nothing but self-gratification. I would do this all again with both Vice City and San Andreas; and I would do it more than once (thank you memory card corruption). I even managed to master the terrible flying controls of the Dodo; I could keep that piece of crap in the air for over ten straight minutes.

The release of Grand Theft Auto III will always have a special place in my heart. It’s my favorite game in the series and I had that warm fuzzy feeling in my stomach from being an original fan and hearing all my friends gush over this game without ever knowing a thing about the previous games. Few games have ever blown my mind like GTA3 and I doubt many games ever will, but I know that GTA3 will always be one of the greatest games I’ve ever played. I must also give major props to the greatest radio station ever featured in a GTA game: Chatterbox FM. There will only be one Lazlow; one Lazlow to rule them all.