What makes GTA San Andreas a good open-world game?

GTA San Andreas is one of Rockstar's best open world games ever created.

Only GTA 5 realistically compares to GTA San Andreas as far as the greatest open world GTA title is concerned. Even then, there are several aspects that make the latter game a legendary title on its own. It is a GTA game that players know and love, but its uniqueness cannot be understated.

It's the closest to an RPG as far as GTA games go. RPGs are sometimes associated with open-world games, and GTA San Andreas takes some of the best aspects from both genres.

It rewards exploration, and its main objectives are good enough to entice a player to play from the beginning to its end.

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Why GTA San Andreas is a good open-world game

GTA San Andreas feels alive compared to some other open world games (Image via Rockstar Games)

Ideally, an open-world game should allow the player to explore the world at their own leisure and complete objectives as they see fit. The GTA series tends to follow this basic formula rather well.

Limitations, like Island Restrictions, are minor flaws that can easily be overlooked in lieu of GTA San Andreas's other amazing features.

The state of San Andreas

The San Andreas map (Image via Rockstar Games)

San Andreas is a diverse landscape unlike any other location within the series. Each of the three major cities varies wildly from one another, and there are even notable differences amongst the different districts in each city.

Add in a massive countryside, and it's easy to get lost in how wondrous GTA San Andreas's world can feel at times. Players are incentivized to collect various collectibles. They give the player a useful reward upon collecting every single one of them per class.

Not only that, but different locations tend to spawn different pedestrians and vehicles, which can make every area feel more alive and immersive. GTA San Andreas is underrated when it comes to attention to detail, which only helps to make the legendary game feel even better.

So much to do in GTA San Andreas

The player can still do their usual GTA antics in this game (Image via Rockstar Games)

One thing that sets GTA San Andreas apart from other open world games is the number of activities that the player can partake in at any given moment. For example, Las Venturas has a few casinos where players could gamble.

Compare that to a location like Mount Chiliad, where the player can partake in a short bicycle race side-mission. Even the most pointless place in the countryside can make a player feel lonely and awkward, which further contributes to GTA San Andreas feeling like an immersive open-world game.

Good open-world games should make a player enjoy the freedom to explore the world at their own leisure. An open world can be good but still fail at this task.

Case in point, L.A. Noire is a great game to play through, but it doesn't reward players for going out of their way to explore the world.

GTA San Andreas's status as an open world game

The missions are also fun in this game (Image via Rockstar Games)

Interestingly enough, GTA 3 popularized open-world games to a broader mainstream audience. Objectively speaking, GTA San Andreas has far more features and activities for the player to do than its predecessor.

If a game like GTA 3 revolutionized the industry, then it's fair to say that GTA San Andreas is a great open-world game in its own right. It's aged mostly well for a game that came out nearly two decades ago, which is more than what most people can say about other open-world games from a similar time period.

GTA San Andreas is unlikely to ever fall off as a good open-world game. It's a timeless classic, so it will always have a reputation for being a legendary GTA title.