Grand Theft Auto 2 (PlayStation)

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Description

Lie, cheat, and steal your way through three districts of a huge city in the follow-up to Grand Theft Auto. Earn the respect of 7 different gangs as you demolish the town in your attempt to make lots of cash.

The game takes place at an undisclosed time in the near future. Unlike the first game which featured three different cities, Grand Theft Auto 2 only features a single town, but it's divided in three districts which are unlocked one at a time: downtown, residential and industrial. Like in the original the player goes around answering phones to initiate various missions. The game uses an overhead camera in a 3D landscape and allows the player to freely explore the city and steal any vehicle the player sets his or her eyes on. To unlock new districts the player must reach a certain score which is done by committing crimes and finishing missions.

Because the game now features multiple criminal gangs, the player must choose allegiances. Performing missions for one gang, will decrease the player's reputation for another. When the player commits crimes he also becomes wanted by the local police, but as more crimes are committed without shaking the police, they will give way for first SWAT Teams, then Special Agents and finally the army.

New features include the ability to save at the church, when donating enough money, and various side missions, such as becoming a taxi driver to ear money. There are also many new cars with weapons attached such as a firetruck with a flamethrower and a car with machine guns.

On the PC version the player can change the time of day from noon to dusk to allow for more moody lighting. On the PlayStation the game can only be played at noon, and on the Dreamcast only at dusk.

Screenshots

Promo Images

Alternate Titles

• "俠盜獵車手 2" -- Traditional Chinese spelling
• "侠盗车手2" -- Simplified Chinese spelling
• "GTA 2 Беспредел" -- Russian spelling
• "GTA 2" -- Official abbreviation

Part of the Following Groups

• Genre: Open world / Free-roaming / Sandbox action and driving
• Grand Theft Auto series
• PlayStation Greatest Hits releases
• Protagonist: Gangster
• Setting: Future now Past
• Software Pyramide releases
• Sound engine: AIL/Miles Sound System

User Reviews

GTA revisited...	Ciarán Lynch (88)	unrated
Well, the graphics... are smoother... but that's all!	leon101 (64)	unrated

Critic Reviews

Official UK PlayStation Magazine	Apr, 2002	9 out of 10	90
Absolute Playstation	Nov, 1999	87 out of 100	87
Mega Fun	Nov, 1999	86 out of 100	86
All Game Guide	1999		80
Computer and Video Games (CVG)	Jan, 2000		80
Game Freaks 365	2002	7.8 out of 10	78
GameSpot	Oct 22, 1999	6.9 out of 10	69
Player One	Dec, 1999	69 out of 100	69
IGN	Oct 27, 1999	6.8 out of 10	68
Game Critics	Nov 07, 1999	4 out of 10	40

Forums

Topic	# Posts	Last Post
Doesn't work with a Audio CD Player.	3	vedder (57605) Jul 09, 2009

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Grand Theft Auto 2 appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Freeware release

In December 2004, Rockstar put a full, free version of Grand Theft Auto 2, compatible with Windows XP, on their Rockstar Classics page. Check the related sites section for the link.

German version

In the German version killed enemies don't leave blood behind.

References

In the Residential Sector, two of the city's areas are named Largo and Stromberg, presumably named after James Bond villains Emilio Largo and Karl Stromberg.

Awards

• PC Player (Germany)
  • Issue 01/2000 - Best Action Game in 1999

Information also contributed by Maw and Sciere.

Related Web Sites

• Grand Theft Auto 2 (Official Site)
• GTA II at GTAGaming (Information site about all things GTA II.)
• IGCD Internet Game Cars Database (Game page on IGCD, a database that tries to archive vehicles found in video games.)
• Rockstar Classics - Free Downloads (Rockstar Classics website where you can download the game for free.)
• Wikipedia: Grand Theft Auto 2 (Information about Grand Theft Auto 2 at Wikipedia)