What Could Have Been / Grand Theft Auto

The Grand Theft Auto series comprises some of the biggest games of their respective console generations. Even with how much wound up in the finished games, however, some parts ultimately didn't make it into the final products. The GTA Wiki has a list of so-called "beta releases" detailing content cut from the games.

• Grand Theft Auto (Classic):
  • At one point, the original game was conceived as a Sims-esque open sandbox world that had the player interacting with dinosaurs that walk around the streets of a city.
  • Later on in development, the game was called Race'n'Chase and allowed players to take the role of either the cops or the criminals.
  • Vehicles cut from the game include a helicopter, a SWAT van, and a red sports car.
• Grand Theft Auto 2:
  • Weapons that were programmed, but ultimately cut from the game, include a "microwave" gun that fried everybody in the direction it was aimed in, an instant-detonating version of the vehicle bomb, and an electric baton.
  • Weapons and items that were never implemented but were on the developers' wish list include binoculars, a sniper rifle, a "dummy tracker" that directed enemies to target somebody else (and was intended for use in multiplayer), tear gas, and caltrops for cars (referred to as "stingers").
  • Early builds of the game had neighborhoods called Chernobyl Docks, Romanova, Azimuth, Barking, and Kyabetsu.
• Grand Theft Auto III: This video goes into detail on an early design document of the game from December 2000 that was released in 2021, and the differences between it and the final version of the game.
  • A Sega Dreamcast version of the game was in the works initially, but the console's lack of processing power led Rockstar to instead shift their development efforts to the PlayStation 2.
  • One of the most famous pieces of cut content from the game was Darkel, a hobo revolutionary who would have given the player missions that involved causing chaos, death, and destruction throughout the city, such as rigging an ice cream truck with explosives and using it to attract people before detonating it. He was cut from the game late enough in development that his voice actor Bill Fiore is still listed in the credits, with some of his missions retooled into gang warfare missions (the aforementioned ice cream truck mission, for instance, became an attack on a gang instead) and plot-free Rampages, leading to speculation that he was cut due to 9/11 and fear that the game would be glamorizing terrorism. Rockstar would later deny this, stating in 2011 that it was because they felt he didn't mesh well with the other characters in the game (the final game notably never has the player deliberately killing civilians in the main story, only rival criminals). This hasn't stopped urban legends from circulating about the alleged content of his missions, including claims that one of them involved blowing up a school bus full of children.
  • Mission involving killing customers at Forelli restaurants in order to ruin their businesses were cut for the same reason: civilians were not to be targets in missions, only criminals.
  • Rockstar originally planned to bring back characters and gangs from previous games, including Bubba and Brother Marcus from the first game and the Zaibatsu Corporation from GTA2, before electing to set the game in a separate continuity.
  • Other characters cut from the game include a pimp named JJ (with an accompanying side mission), the elderly Yakuza leader Toshiro who was connected to the Zaibatsu Corporation, a prostitute named Trixie who worked for Luigi like Misty did, a military man named Major Hale (possibly retooled/decomposited into both Phil Cassidy and Donald Love), and the real-life German musician Tom Novy As Himself (whose song, originally supposed to appear on Head Radio, was also cut).
  • The plot was initially kicked off by a gang called the Masks attacking Claude and his heist crew, and then serving as major antagonists who would attack and ambush Claude throughout the game. This was retooled into Claude's girlfriend and accomplice Catalina betraying him for the Colombian cartel. The Yakuza were also originally responsible for the bombing on the bridge that frees Claude, not the Colombians.
  • 8-Ball, known only by his nickname in the final game, originally had a real name, Mullin, while Mickey Hamfists was originally nicknamed "Muscles". The Leone crime family was also originally called the Sorvinos, the Triads were originally the Thongs, Salvatore Leone was originally Frankie, Chunky Lee Chong was originally Chunky Dave, Asuka was originally Kemuri, and Toni Cipriani's last name was originally Fucile.
  • Maria Latore originally had a backstory as a former college student who became a stripper to pay her tuition, only for Salvatore to take a liking to her and make her his Trophy Wife, one who feels that she's living in a Gilded Cage. The final game removes this backstory and makes her relationship with Salvatore one where she's using him for his money, and San Andreas reveals that she instead met Salvatore as a waitress at his Las Venturas casino, Caligula's Palace.
  • Claude was originally voiced, but Rockstar decided to later make him a silent protagonist so that players could more easily put themselves in his shoes.
  • There was originally an alternate ending where Claude could spare Catalina and leave her to be arrested instead.
  • The drug Spank was originally called Rapture.
  • Several vehicles had different names initially. The Kuruma was originally called the Sentinel, a name that was instead assigned to a vehicle originally called the Beamer. The Moonbeam and Blista vans were originally called the Aster and the Space, the Perennial station wagon was originally the Maurice, the Manana compact car was originally the Ariant, the Idaho sedan was originally the Hachura, the Bobcat pickup was originally the U-Jerk, and the Banshee, Cheetah, Infernus, and Stinger sports cars were originally the Rumbler, the Rocket, the Dyablo, and the Shark.
  • Cars cut from the game include the Panto (based on a Fiat 128), a tanker-trailer, a forklift, an armored vehicle called the PHUQU-2 that resembled a Stryker AFV, a school bus, and a car resembling a Volkswagen Bug.
  • Police vehicles were originally blue-and-white, but this was changed to black-and-white in order to avoid similarities to the real-life NYPD's vehicles after 9/11.
  • The Diablos originally used custom Infernuses as their gang car instead of custom Stallions.
  • Weapons cut from the game include a golf club, a crowbar, a magnum handgun, a silenced pistol and Uzi, a minigun, and a satchel charge.
  • There was originally a first-person mode, which was shown off in a Game Informer preview.
  • Areas cut from the game include a power plant, chemical plant, and city park in Portland, a cruise ship port in Staunton Island, a skate park, country club, military base, and facilities (including housing and testing facilities) of the Zaibatsu and Morning Star corporations in Shoreside Vale, and a prison island separate from the rest of the city where the intro would take place. The airport was originally located in Staunton Island before being moved to Shoreside Vale, the used car dealership was moved from Shoreside Vale to Portland. Also, there were originally planned to be various interior locations like bars, nightclubs, strip clubs, restaurants, and theaters to explore, with the final game instead only showing building interiors in cutscenes.
  • There was originally a ferry system connecting the game's three islands, a feature that would later be implemented in Liberty City Stories.
  • Initially, there were to be only five radio stations available at the start of the game, with two more unlocked when the player reached Staunton Island and the last one unlocked with Shoreside Vale. In the final game, all radio stations are unlocked right from the start. There were also plans for a Country Music station that didn't make the cut.
  • There were originally ideas for using cash to not only buy weapons and progress through the game, but also to purchase health items at pharmacies along with unique cars.
  • Traffic violations (speeding, running red lights, crashing into other cars) originally gained the player a wanted level.
  • There were ideas for pedestrians who witness a crime to run to a phone booth to call the police, earning players a wanted level unless they stopped the pedestrian first. This idea would later be reused in The Warriors.
  • The day/night cycle was originally planned to have an effect on gameplay beyond just an aesthetic one. The atmosphere would turn seedier at night as more criminals came out, traffic would increase during rush hour in the early morning and late afternoon, and some missions would be easier or harder as a result.
  • There were ideas for a multiplayer component, with deathmatch, race, stunt race, and tag modes.
  • If Rockstar faced too many problems with censorship, then there were plans to make two versions of the game. One was the M-rated game we ultimately got, and the second was a censored, T-rated version for more restrictive markets where the sex, violence, and swearing were edited, including having pedestrians be unkillable but instead knocked unconscious and get up a short time later in an "injured" state. The censors never complained, so the M-rated version was the only one they made.
• Grand Theft Auto: Vice City:
  • The game was originally intended as an Expansion Pack for GTA III, with new weapons, vehicles, and missions. The developers realized that the content they had planned was enough to create an entire separate game, and so they spun it off into Vice City.
  • The Gator Keys were an area based on the Florida Keys that was originally supposed to be part of the map.
  • Multiple characters' names were changed. Ricardo Diaz was originally named Fernando Diaz, Cam Jones was originally Mike Jones, BJ Smith was originally BJ Jones, and Avery Carrington was originally Sergio.
  • Pastor Richards and Donald Love originally had larger roles in the game.
  • Lance Vance originally didn't betray Tommy at the end.
  • A former associate of Tommy Vercetti named Mr. Moffat was originally part of one mission.
  • There are numerous cut phone conversations between Tommy and Mercedes that were cut from the final game, but are still in the files.
  • Cut vehicles include an '80s version of the Kuruma sedan, the Dodo airplane, a civilian version of the Patriot truck, and a unique Coast Guard version of the Maverick helicopter (likely retooled into the VCN Maverick, which is still called the "COASTMAV" in the game's files).
  • Police cars were originally white with red and blue stripes, resembling the Miami Beach Police Department's cars instead of the green-and-white cars of the Miami-Dade Police Department that the game ultimately went with.
  • One of Tommy's outfits was originally a biker outfit called "MC Tommy".
  • The biker clubhouse was originally a property that Tommy could purchase.
  • The mission "All Hands on Deck!" originally involved Cortez's yacht being attacked by the Shining Path instead of the French secret service.
  • The radio stations originally included a news station called VCN.
  • Cut weapons include land mines, a grenade launcher, a taser, a nail gun, a Steyr AUG, a Desert Eagle, a silenced 9mm, and a silver Colt 1911.
  • In a very strange case, tear gas was available as a weapon in the first copies of the game, just to be removed completely in later editions.
• Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has its own page.
• Grand Theft Auto IV: This video goes into detail on unused beta content from the game, and this one covers unused content from its expansions, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony.
  • The game was originally supposed to have areas based on upstate New York and Long Island. This was scrapped early in development, though references to an area called "the Carraways" (presumably based on the Hamptons) still exist in the final product and in the expansion packs. Road signs also point to neighborhoods called "Hedgebury" and "Goatherd" that was removed from the final game. Other unused areas found in the game files include places called Anger Bay, Frogtown, Jefferson Heights, Norfolk, and Richmond.
  • A beta version of the map that appears on a phone book reveals that the airport originally had three runways instead of two, and that Alderney was larger, with a nature area in its northwest.
  • The Beechwood Park neighborhood was originally called Grayfords, and Outlook Park was originally Overlook Park.
  • The Statue of Happiness, the game's parody of the Statue of Liberty, was originally called the Statue of Freedom and more straightforwardly based on its real-life counterpart, with a similar face rather than one modeled after Hillary Rodham Clinton and a torch in her hand instead of a cup of coffee (both of which were added in response to Clinton's comments criticizing the series after the "Hot Coffee" scandal).
  • A large number of songs were cut from the soundtracks of the game and its expansions. Names for the songs can be found in the "american.gxt" database. The Lost and Damned in particular has a lot of classic rock music that was cut, while The Ballad of Gay Tony likewise has a lot of cut dance and New Wave songs. Tuff Gong Radio was also originally called Babylon, another station, Head Radio, was cut from the finished game, and the songs added to Vladivostok FM in the expansions were originally supposed to be on a new station, Eurodance FM.
  • Some businesses were renamed as production went on. For instance, Well-Stacked Pizza became Pizza This, SuperRugman became Easy Lay Carpet, the Rockstar Cafe became the Superstar Cafe, and Magnum Helitours became Higgins Helitours. Roman's taxi company was also originally a limo company.
  • Niko was originally able to enter more restaurants and order food from them, such as Mr. Fuk's Rice Box (which winds up only appearing in one mission), Fanny Crab's, and multiple Cluckin' Bell locations, and stop at ice cream vendors. He could also visit barbershops and get different haircuts.
  • There were plans for a jewelry store and a bank to show up in missions that were ultimately cut.
  • There was originally a way for Niko to purchase a new cell phone. Instead, he's given a new phone after he reaches Algonquin. The developers also considered giving the phone an MP3 player to let players listen to music on foot, but this was scrapped.
  • It was originally possible to buy drugs.
  • Niko's character was based on Vladimir Mashkov's character Sasha in Behind Enemy Lines, and originally, Rockstar worked with Mashkov himself to have him play the character. However, it didn't work out, with Mashkov later saying that he didn't take the project seriously enough. Rockstar went with the American actor Michael Hollick to play him instead.
  • Niko's default outfit originally came with fingerless gloves. This one actually became a meme among GTA fans after it was removed.
  • Flyable planes were originally part of the game, but after the map was cut down, Rockstar removed them, feeling that they had little use in a more compact city environment.
  • Other cut vehicles include a coach bus, a version of the Boxville van used by NOOSE, a tow truck, and an unnamed SUV.
  • Cars were originally supposed to have unique, randomly generated license plate numbers (which they did in San Andreas and would again in GTA V), but in the final game, they all have the same plate. Vehicle modification (ditto) was also cut because the developers thought it wouldn't feel natural for a character like Niko to drive a flamboyant Rice Burner.
  • There was originally a bus service that Niko could use to get around the city like subway, as well as a ferry service running from Algonquin to Happiness Island.
  • Scrapped weapons include a revolver, a silenced pistol, a nightstick (carried by the police), a pool cue (which would show up in The Lost and Damned), a flamethrower, and a minigun. Body armor was also originally visible on Niko.
  • The mission "Bull in a China Shop" originally had Niko actually going into the shop, smashing items, and assaulting its owner in order to extort him as opposed to just breaking the windows, and ended with Vlad asking Niko to deliver a bottle of vodka to the shop owner as an apology gift.
  • Snow was originally supposed to be in the game, but got removed in favor of an autumn setting.
  • There were originally minigames involving outer space and zombies, the latter titled "Z: Resurrection" and ultimately showing up in the finished game as the name of a movie seen on posters. Unused animations and dialogue suggest that they were video games that could be played as activities with Niko's friends.
  • A golf minigame was cut, though animations for Niko are still in the code. It was ultimately included in The Ballad of Gay Tony.
  • Rockstar originally planned to bring the Rhino tank back in TLaD, but chose not to, with only a few lines of code hinting at it.
  • In TLaD, there were plans to put a fight club side mission in the Lost's clubhouse. This would ultimately show up in TBoGT.
  • TLaD was themed around motorcycles, but there were also plans for a different kind of bike, a BMX bicycle that one could take to a skate park included on the map. This was cut from the game.
  • Malc and Stubbs originally had larger roles in TLaD, including more missions from the both of them.
  • A cut mission in TLaD involved the entire Lost MC getting into a police chase.
  • Johnny in TLaD was supposed to have multiple outfits like Niko in the main game and later Luis in TBoGT. In the final game, he's locked into one outfit, his leather biker jacket and jeans.
  • In TBoGT, Armando was originally supposed to be able to sell weapons to Luis, the way Little Jacob did for Niko in the main game and Terry did for Johnny in TLaD.
  • A character named Akeks Thornton was originally supposed to appear in TBoGT, but was removed. Information on him describes him as the director of the CIA, an organization that was switched out for a fictional counterpart, the IAA, in GTA V.
  • Vehicles cut from TBoGT include the Robin (possibly inspired by the infamous Reliant Robin), a wrecked but fully drivable police car, and a large van.
  • Weapons cut from TBoGT include a non-silenced version of the assault SMG and a full-auto version of the automatic shotgun.
  • The TBoGT mission "Corner Kids" was originally a Hold the Line mission where Luis, Armando, and Henrique waited for Tony to bail them out in a helicopter, instead of fighting through bad guys to get to a getaway car.
  • There were supposed to be more random encounter side missions in TBoGT involving Luis' Psycho Ex-Girlfriend Margot, but they were trimmed down to just two.
• Grand Theft Auto V:
  • Datamining of the game, followed by a leak of its source code on Christmas Eve 2023, revealed that Rockstar originally had up to eight single-player expansions in the works that would have continued the story of the game's protagonists, as well as introduced non-canon side stories built around fantastical scenarios. However, the Obvious Beta state of the game's multiplayer mode, Grand Theft Auto Online, at launch necessitated lots of work to fix it, and furthermore, GTA Online went on to become an unexpectedly massive Cash-Cow Franchise, causing Rockstar to redirect its post-launch support to adding new multiplayer content. Some of the things they were planning to add to single-player through expansions would be retooled into multiplayer expansions instead. This page on the GTA wiki goes into more detail.
    • The Diamond Casino & Resort multiplayer expansion, including the heist that it is built around, was originally intended for single-player.
    • One expansion would have been called Agent Trevor and would have involved Trevor working for the IAA. Twelve new assassination side missions were also introduced. Much of its content was instead retooled into the Doomsday Heist multiplayer expansion.
    • There were plans for two non-canon single-player expansions similar to Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare, one themed around a Zombie Apocalypse and the other around an Alien Invasion. Content from the former became part of the Arena War multiplayer expansion.
  • A cut mission strand called the Sharmoota Job involved Michael and Trevor robbing Martin Madrazo's mansion and kidnapping his wife Patricia. In the final game, Trevor would kidnap Patricia offscreen after Michael decides not to go through with the heist. Several elements from this cut heist were later retooled for the Cayo Perico Heist multiplayer expansion.
  • Similarly to the previous game, a large portion of the soundtrack was cut from the final release. Some of the cut song names can be found in the "trackID.gxt2" database, while others were found in a since-destroyed prototype of V revealed on GTAForums.
  • On Christmas Eve 2023, the game's source code was leaked, revealing a treasure trove of cut content and plans for eight single-player expansions, including a prologue/prequel (speculated by fans to have involved a return to North Yankton), a return to Liberty City, and a single-player DLC called Agent Trevor that got retooled into a multiplayer expansion.

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