While Rockstar’sGrand Theft Auto 5: Expanded and Enhancedmay not have had the best reception, the more recent announcement ofGrand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - Definitive Editionseems to have fans a lot more excited. However, Rockstar is only publishing this collection, it is instead being developed by Grove Street Games - despite initial speculation that the collection would be developed by Rockstar Dundee. The footage released so far has surprised those who were disappointed byExpanded and Enhanced,particularly in graphical capabilities.While there’s no news aboutGrand Theft Auto 6,Definitive Editionis the next best thing for a lot of long-timeGTAfans.
Grove Street Games has a history of adapting Rockstar games, and the studio’s specialty is porting games. Grove Street Games has released a handful of IPs, includingAuralux,and was originally formed in 2007 under the name War Drum Studios. Its long partnership with Rockstar has led it to become responsible for a number ofGrand Theft Autoports and spin-offs, though undoubtedly theDefinitive Editionis the best received yet. There are a couple of reasons for this, but it ultimately shows Grove Street Games' growth as a developer, and if this upcoming release is as good as fans hope it to be then Grove Street could be a developer to watch closer down the line.
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Grove Street Games' History
While Rockstar fans will be most familiar with Grove Street’sGrand Theft Autoports, the developer also released a 2016 mobile port ofBullyand a 2012 mobile port ofMax Payne.BeforeDefinitive Edition,Grove Street was responsible for mobile versions ofGrand Theft Auto 3,Grand Theft Auto: Vice City’s 10th anniversary edition, andGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
As such, it’s clear the company has a good working relationship with Rockstar, so it’s not surprising Rockstar would collaborate with it again. However, the Grove Street version ofSan Andreas, which was alsoported to PlayStation 3and Xbox, was poorly received by fans. This version of the game has even gained notoriety amongstGrand Theft Autofans as one of the worst ports of the series.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy -Definitive Edition
The company’s rebrand from War Drum Studios to Grove Street Games does put some distance between the brand and itsSan Andreasports.Definitive Editionis already receiving praise for its apparent visual remasteringofGrand Theft Auto 3, Vice City,andSan Andreas.The major difference is that Grove Street is using Unreal Engine to port these classic games to current and last-gen consoles, as well as prepping for a later mobile release. While the actual quality of theDefinitive Editionremains to be seen, these improvements have fans' expectations high.
Another big factor for thebuzz thisDefinitive Editionhas been gatheringis just how much fans of the series have wanted the remasters. While there is some fatigue coming from the increase of video game remasters over the years, nostalgia is enough to drum up a lot of excitement. This speaks to a larger trend of recapturing the simplicity and escapism of earlier games with current technology. TheGrand Theft Autogames included in theDefinitive Editionare some of the most well-remembered of the series, and with the exhaustion ofGTA 5and absence ofGTA 6news, this remaster has seemingly evoked the most positive reaction to any Rockstar news of late.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy -Definitive Editionis set to release November 11 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
