The 10 best GTA clones to play while you wait for GTA 6

If the long wait for GTA 6 is starting to get to you, there are a lot of older games that should be able to scratch a similar itch.

Given how long it’s been since Rockstar Games has released a new GTA game (13 years this September!), it’s no wonder people are getting antsy about GTA 6 and its promised release date this year.

It’s still going to be a long wait for that November 19 launch date, though, and it’s entirely possible it will be delayed a third time, forcing fans to wait until 2027 to play it.

GTA 5 and its GTA Online multiplayer mode have helped keep people satiated this long, but what if you’ve had enough of that and yet still hanker for something similar? Well, there have been plenty of GTA clones over the years; some of which are worth playing today, even if they don’t reach quite the same highs as their inspiration.

True Crime: Streets Of LA

PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, and PC

One of the earliest GTA clones, launching just a couple of years after GTA 3, True Crime: Streets Of LA is also one of the most brazen, lifting all the core elements of the series, including a city you can freely roam, full of vehicles to commandeer and innocent civilians to gun down or run over.

It’s also one of the more successful examples, proving to be decently enjoyable even if it lacked originality; although it led to a sadly inferior sequel. While publisher Activision has long since abandoned the series, you can grab a second-hand PlayStation 2 copy for as little as £3 from CeX.

Wheelman

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC

Something of a cross between GTA and the Burnout racing games, Wheelman is most notable for starring Vin Diesel in the lead role. In fact, Diesel was heavily involved with developer Tigon Studios, which also co-developed his Chronicles Of Riddick games with the core team behind Indiana Jones And The Great Circle.

With Diesel being a fan of video games himself, we’re a little surprised he hasn’t pushed to re-release Wheelman. Although it’s let down by its on-foot mission, the actual driving is a lot of fun. You can grab an Xbox 360 copy for just £2.50 through CeX, but it’s unfortunately not backwards compatible with the Xbox Series X and, like True Crime, isn’t on Steam.

The Getaway

PlayStation 2

Aside from two London expansions for the very first GTA game, Rockstar has stuck to using American cities for the series. If you’ve ever wanted a 3D GTA game that lets you roam the city of London, then The Getaway is the next best thing.

Its recreation of London isn’t as accurate nowadays, but that makes it an interesting time capsule for anyone nostalgic for the 2000s. While you can get cheap copies from CeX, it’s strange Sony never moved to re-release it, considering it spawned the Gangs Of London TV show. Although VR title Blood & Truth was originally intended to be an official part of the franchise.

The Godfather

PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PSP, and PC

It came out more than 30 years after the movie (and turned 20 this week), but this adaptation of The Godfather was surprisingly decent for its time and is still regarded as one of the better GTA clones; one you can buy second-hand from places like musicMagpie.

Featuring several actors reprising their roles (including Marlon Brando’s final performance), you play as an original character doing jobs for the Corleone family. There’s been some demand for a remaster, but it’s probably impossible given how much renegotiating for actors’ likenesses would be needed.

Scarface: The World Is Yours

PlayStation 2, Xbox, Wii, and PC

Isn’t it strange that 2006 saw two famous gangster movies, both well over two decades old by the time the games came out, being turned into solidly entertaining GTA clones, that featured many of the original actors?

The Scarface game, however, diverged greatly from its source material, serving as an alternate universe sequel where Tony Montana survives and goes on a revenge spree. A quick Google search shows second-hand copies can be a bit pricey, with the cheapest we can find being the Wii version for £5 at CeX.

An alleged re-release popped up on PC storefronts last year, but it was just as quickly delisted and reportedly uses fan patches without permission, so it’s extremely unlikely it’ll ever be officially available.

The Simpsons: Hit & Run

PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, and PC

To this day, people are still demanding The Simpsons: Hit & Run see a re-release or remaster, especially now that the original developer, Radical Entertainment (which was also responsible for the Scarface game), has been revived.

While lacking guns, this Simpsons-ified take on the GTA formula was effectively authentic and, most importantly, quite funny. The game remains available through a fan-made PC mod (which saw a new update just this month) though you need to supply your own copy of the game.

Second-hand PC copies are rather expensive, although CeX is selling them for £15 at time of writing.

Sleeping Dogs

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC

The next batch of examples are much easier to play nowadays since they’re available on modern platforms through their digital storefronts. That includes Sleeping Dogs, which started out as a True Crime sequel set in Hong Kong.

Activision sold the publishing rights to Square Enix, with Sleeping Dogs going onto become something of a cult classic thanks to its atmosphere, a fun world to explore, and plenty of entertaining (if unoriginal) activities.

Marvel actor Simu Liu is so much of a fan that he pushed to revive the cancelled movie adaptation, which he’ll also star in as undercover policeman Wei Shen.

Watch Dogs 2

PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC

The Watch Dogs series is allegedly dead in the water, after the poor sales of 2020’s Watch Dogs: Legion, which isn’t surprising as Legion felt like such a step back after the far superior Watch Dogs 2.

A vast improvement over the first game, Watch Dogs 2’s shooting and driving mechanics were better than GTA 5’s and it also offered some unique ideas of its own, especially its hacking activities. Had the story and characters been more interesting, this could’ve been an even bigger hit.

Lego City Undercover

PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Wii U, and PC

Between its initial Wii U exclusivity and it not being based on a famous movie franchise like Star Wars, Lego City Undercover went unnoticed by many people. That’s such a shame, since it’s not only a good Lego game in its own right, but unironically one of the better GTA clones – and one of the very few suitable for kids.

It’s lost some of its uniqueness over the years, thanks to how old the formula of the Lego games has become, but the open world city is very well designed and full of things to find, and the script can catch you off guard with how genuinely funny it can be.

Saints Row 2

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC

When people think of GTA clones, Saints Row is perhaps the first that comes to mind. Although its reputation has wavered thanks to the woeful 2022 reboot, which helped kill developer Volition.

After the first game was decried as a straight GTA clone, Saints Row 2 helped form more of an identity by focusing on humour and over-the-top gameplay; something the series doubled down on with the sequels, until the reboot.

Saints Row 2 is considered the best entry thanks to its absurd plot and side-activities and while the humour hasn’t aged gracefully since its 2008 release, we respect its refusal to take itself seriously.

The Xbox 360 version is backwards compatible on Xbox Series X, so you can download it for just £8.99, and the original PC version is usually available for £8.79 on Steam, although it’s currently discounted to the very low price of £2.19 until Thursday, March 26.

Volition also made the Red Faction series which at first was basically Saints Row set on Mars, but with a more serious storyline.

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