{"id":115,"date":"2026-09-29T13:39:59","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T13:39:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gtaside.com\/blog\/?p=115"},"modified":"2026-09-29T13:39:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T13:39:59","slug":"which-gta-to-play-before-gta-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gtaside.com\/blog\/which-gta-to-play-before-gta-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Which GTA to Play Before GTA 6: Replay Guide and Prices (September 2026)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Seven weeks before GTA 6, four games are worth replaying: Vice City for the city GTA 6 returns to, GTA V for the protagonist switching and GTA Online, GTA IV for the heavier driving and police, and San Andreas for the scale of a whole state.<\/strong> Vice City and San Andreas now come in GTA: The Trilogy, since their original PC keys are out of stock. With GTA IV on sale on Steam until 1 October, GTA V as a PC key and the Trilogy as an Xbox key, the whole replay costs about 31 EUR. Here is what each game teaches, how long it runs, and the cheapest real price, from our price check of 27 September 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vice City: the setting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

GTA 6’s Vice City is the modern version of the 1986 city of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. The beaches, the neon, Ocean Beach and Little Havana all come from the 2002 game, as our Vice City map<\/a> shows. The story takes about 18 hours by community trackers, the shortest of the four. The original PC version left official stores in 2021, and its reseller keys are out of stock, so the way to play it today is the Definitive Edition in GTA: The Trilogy<\/a>, from 16.09 EUR as an Xbox key at Eneba or 18.19 EUR at Instant Gaming<\/a>, against 59.99 EUR on the official stores. On PC, Steam sells each Definitive Edition separately at 19.79 EUR instead of 59.99 EUR until 1 October.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GTA V: the structure and the online mode<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

GTA 6 switches between Jason and Lucia the way GTA V switches between Michael, Franklin and Trevor, and GTA Online is still running weekly events, and its yearly Halloween events usually start in early October. GTA V’s story runs about 31 hours. On PC, buy GTA V Enhanced: 9.14 EUR at Eneba or 9.79 EUR at Instant Gaming as a Rockstar key, against 29.99 EUR on Steam. On PlayStation, no key seller has stock and the PlayStation Store is back to 39.99 EUR for the PS4 & PS5 bundle, its September sale is over. On Xbox, the native Series X|S version costs about 18 EUR as a key. Full table on our GTA V price comparison<\/a>, and where to download each version on our GTA 5 download guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GTA IV: the weight and the police<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Heavy cars and a police chase you have to break out of: GTA IV is the most grounded GTA before GTA 6, whose six-star wanted level and criminal profile are covered on our GTA 6 gameplay page<\/a>. Niko Bellic’s story runs about 28 hours, and the Complete Edition adds The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony. The cheapest copy right now is the official one: Steam sells it at 5.99 EUR instead of 19.99 EUR until 1 October. After that, keys start at 7.36 EUR at Eneba and 9.49 EUR at Instant Gaming for the Rockstar Games Launcher. On Xbox it runs through backward compatibility, 24.99 EUR on the Xbox Store. Details on our GTA IV price comparison<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

San Andreas: the scale<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Three cities with countryside and desert between them: San Andreas was the last time a GTA map felt like a state rather than a city, and Leonida is built on that idea. The story runs about 31 hours, more with the side content. Like Vice City, its original PC version is out of stock, so it comes with the same Trilogy purchase. Our San Andreas page<\/a> covers the cheats and the secrets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How much does the whole replay cost?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n
Game<\/th>Story length (approx.)<\/th>Cheapest price, 27 Sept 2026<\/th>Official price<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>\n
Trilogy Definitive Edition (III, Vice City, San Andreas)<\/td>15 + 18 + 31 h<\/td>16.09 EUR (Xbox key)<\/td>59.99 EUR<\/td><\/tr>\n
GTA IV Complete Edition<\/td>28 h, plus the two episodes<\/td>5.99 EUR (Steam sale to 1 Oct)<\/td>19.99 EUR on Steam<\/td><\/tr>\n
GTA V (PC Enhanced)<\/td>31 h<\/td>9.14 EUR (PC key)<\/td>29.99 EUR on Steam<\/td><\/tr>\n
GTA V (PS4 & PS5)<\/td>31 h<\/td>39.99 EUR (PlayStation Store)<\/td>39.99 EUR<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Trilogy, GTA IV and GTA V come to 31.22 EUR at the lowest prices we found, as long as the Steam sale on GTA IV lasts. Story lengths are rounded community averages from HowLongToBeat; your own pace decides. Instant Gaming links on GTAside are affiliate links, same price for you; where another seller is cheaper, we say so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And GTA III, Liberty City Stories, Chinatown Wars?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

GTA III comes free with the Trilogy and is worth an evening for history; Liberty City Stories, Vice City Stories and Chinatown Wars are different, smaller games. Good games, not preparation. If you have time for one more, make it Red Dead Redemption 2, Rockstar’s most recent open world before GTA 6: from 11.91 EUR on PC and 12.07 EUR on Xbox at Eneba on 27 September, against 59.99 EUR on Steam, compared on our Red Dead Redemption 2 price page<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Do I need to play GTA V before GTA 6?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

No. GTA 6 is a new story with new characters. GTA V is good preparation for the character switching and for GTA Online, not a prerequisite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is GTA 6 connected to Vice City’s story?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Rockstar has announced no link to Tommy Vercetti’s story. The city is the connection, not the plot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can I still buy the original Vice City and San Andreas on PC?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

They left official stores in 2021, and the reseller keys are out of stock in September 2026. The Trilogy Definitive Edition is the way to play them today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How long does it take to play these GTA games?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

About 120 hours of story for GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas, GTA IV and GTA V, plus GTA IV’s episodes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prices checked on 27 September 2026 on each seller’s page; official prices from Steam, the PlayStation Store and the Xbox Store on the same day. Lengths from HowLongToBeat averages.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n