5 most interesting facts about the cities of the GTA series

The GTA series is full of interesting facts. Unsurprisingly, a great deal of these facts pertains to the numerous cities found within the franchise.

Cities within the GTA series are some of the most important yet overlooked features in the franchise. As a result, this article will try to go over some neat little facts surrounding various GTA cities from the 2D Universe of games all the way to the HD Universe.

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Five lesser-known facts about the cities of the GTA series

#5 - Anywhere City is the only futuristic city in the GTA series

GTA 2 is futuristically themed, which is something that hasn't been explored since (Image via GTA Wiki)

The vast majority of GTA cities either take place in the past (like in GTA Vice City) or in the present (like in GTA 5). The sole exception to this is GTA 2, which took place in the future. While 2013 is in the past now (same as GTA 5, funnily enough), it was considered an ideal date for a futuristic city.

GTA 2 is futuristically themed, which is something that hasn't been explored since. As a bonus fact, some events of GTA 2 contradict themselves, which means that the game either takes place in 1999 or 2013.

It's not fully explained which of the two dates the game is supposed to take place on, but it's still a neat little fact for GTA fans to know.

#4 - London is the only GTA city to share its name with its real-life counterpart

Several of the districts in GTA's London also share their names with their real-life counterparts (Image via History.com)

Most GTA fans know that London is a real city in England, but a great deal of these fans aren't aware that GTA 1's expansion packs took place here as well.

Several of the districts in GTA's London also share their names with their real-life counterparts. For example, Brixton, Chelsea and Mile End are all real places that serve as inspiration for their GTA counterparts.

London hasn't been seen since the GTA London games back in 1999. People like Dan Houser have stated that GTA will stay in America for the HD universe, so it's unlikely that fans will see London again anytime soon.

#3 - Liberty City has appeared the most often out of any city

There are 16 games in the GTA series, with half of the franchise being dedicated toward Liberty City (Image via GTA Wiki)

Liberty City has appeared in the following ten GTA games:

1. GTA 1
2. GTA III
3. GTA Advance
4. GTA Vice City (cameo)
5. GTA San Andreas (cameo)
6. GTA Liberty City Stories
7. GTA 4
8. GTA 4: The Lost and Damned
9. GTA 4: The Ballad of Gay Tony
10. GTA Chinatown Wars

Even with players excluding the two cameos, eight GTA titles is still a lot of games for a single city to be the main focus. There are 16 games in the GTA series, with half of the franchise being dedicated toward Liberty City (not counting cameos). If a player does count cameos, that's more than half of the entire GTA series involving Liberty City in some way.

By comparison, Vice City has only appeared three times, with the games being GTA 1, GTA Vice City, and GTA Vice City Stories. No other city comes close to Liberty City in terms of sheer appearances within the GTA series.

#2 - Ludendorff is the only city in the GTA series where players cannot normally go back to

Ludendorff is the only city in the GTA series that players cannot enter whenever they want (Image via GTA Wiki)

Not counting Liberty City in GTA San Andreas (as there are numerous other games where players get to explore the popular city), Ludendorff is the only city in the GTA series that players cannot enter whenever they want.

Players were able to visit Ludendorff in GTA Online via glitches, but those have long since been patched out. Unless a player is on one of two missions in the base game of GTA 5, they cannot revisit Ludendorff under any normal circumstances.

It's an interesting place to look at, but there doesn't seem to be any chance that players can visit the iconic location for pleasure.

#1 - Vice City is the only city in the 3D universe without a location based on Chinatown

There is no Chinatown or anything resembling Chinatown in Vice City (Image via GTA Wiki)

While there are locations based on Chinatown in Liberty City and San Andreas, Vice City does not have them. In Liberty City, there is a Chinatown in Portland. In San Andreas, there is a Chinatown in San Fierro. By comparison, there is no Chinatown or anything resembling Chinatown in Vice City.

Vice City's Chinese population is a lot smaller compared to other cities, so it would make sense that there wouldn't be a Chinatown to go along with it. Chinatown wasn't always around in the GTA series, so some games in the HD universe will also lack it (GTA 5 and GTA Online).

Note: This article reflects the writer’s personal views.