GTA 5: 5 of the best side missions in the game

GTA 5 is one of the most expansive gaming experiences and can certainly overwhelm the player with its scale and vastly freeing open world.

Rockstar Games like to pack their games with fascinating details that make each game world feel alive and lived-in.

GTA 5's game world is no different. As players explore the state of San Andreas, they will often encounter interesting characters that will hand them side quests or side missions.

One of the many ways in which Rockstar Games flex their writing chops is through these side missions. A staple of the RPG genre, GTA 5 also has a number of these side missions labelled as "Strangers and Freaks".

They will mostly appear on the map as "?", and the color of the icon indicates which character the mission can be started by: green for Franklin, blue for Michael, and orange for Trevor.

5 of the best side missions in GTA 5

1) Seeking the Truth - Michael

The Epsilon Cult frequently appears on the game's internet, and players might even see their familiar blue robes around Los Santos and even in other Rockstar titles such as Red Dead Redemption.

Michael can choose to join the cult, and what follows is a bizarre set of events. The missions can be started by completing a survey on the Epsilon Program's website on GTA 5's internet.

After completing the survey, a question mark will appear on the map from which players can start the mission.

2) Altruist Cult - Trevor

Every now and then, GTA 5 tends to venture into creepy territory. One of the creepiest features is the cannibal cult that the player, as Trevor, can choose to help.

In Sandy Shores or other neighboring areas, hitchhikers will ask for Trevor's help. The player can then choose to drive them to the cult's base rather than their desired location.

After Trevor delivers 4 of these people to the cult, they decide to do him in, which is the catalyst for a massive shootout. The player must fight their way out of the cult's clutches while also picking up bags of money that each contains $25,000.

3) Mystery of Leonora Johnson - Franklin

This side mission sees Franklin come into his own as a detective as he uncovers the mystery behind the suspicious death of Leonora Johnson.

The side mission requires the player to collect 50 letter scraps throughout the game world. They can choose to confront the murderer at the end of it.

The letter scraps shouldn't be that difficult to find but players must remember that there is no cash reward at the end of this side mission.

4) The Last One - Franklin

This is perhaps the side mission that takes the most amount of effort in GTA 5 as it requires the player to complete the game 100% before they can begin this mission.

After completing the game, a green question mark appears on the map, and Franklin can go to it to begin his hunt for the infamous Sasquatch. The beast itself isn't particularly hard to find but the fantastic twist ending is definitely a highlight in GTA 5.

5) Grass Roots - Michael

Grass Roots is a side mission available to all three characters but will only affect Trevor and Michael to a degree where they begin hallucinating. In Michael's hallucination, he sees a bunch of aliens trying to attack him.

This makes for an endlessly entertaining sequence as players use a machine gun to mow down aliens that suspiciously look like the Xenomorphs from the Alien franchise.

The whole sequence isn't particularly long but makes for some truly entertaining moments in GTA 5.