10 Things CUT From GTA Games
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VOICE OVER: Aaron Kline
WRITTEN BY: Aaron Kline
With "Grand Theft Auto" dating back to 1997, it's no surprise that many cool and interesting ideas have been scrapped over the years. For this list, we'll be looking at some interesting cut content throughout the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise. Our list of things cut from GTA games includes Playable Lamar from “Grand Theft Auto V” (2013), the Casino of “Grand Theft Auto San Andreas” (2004), the Confederate Flag from the “Grand Theft Auto Trilogy” (2021), and more!
Script written by Aaron Kline
Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we’ll be looking at 10 things cut from GTA games. For this list, we’ll be looking at some interesting cut content throughout the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise. With the series dating back to 1997, it’s no surprise that many cool and interesting ideas have been scrapped over the years. Steal a car and make your way to the comments to let us know of any cut content we may have missed.
The “Grand Theft Auto” series is known for having a lived-in feel to its cities, but have you ever noticed that you never see any kids around? Well, originally children were planned to be in the game, but were later cut. Early beat versions of GTA III had children and school buses roaming around Liberty City. This was obviously cut to avoid controversy of having children end up in a not so great situation. Even with the school buses and children missing on the roads, you can still find the bus model in the game. If we go to 8 Ball’s compound we can see a few crushed buses laying around. Maybe all the children are at Bullworth Academy.
Pulling off sick jumps and flips at the skatepark on a BMX bike in San Andreas is pretty fun, but what if we could ride a skateboard! While skateboarding wouldn’t have been as polished or fleshed out as “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”, it would’ve been nice to be able to kick push throughout San Andreas. The skateboard wasn’t only going to be a mode of transportation, it was also going to be used as a melee weapon. The skateboard was going to be introduced during the mission Mass Dogg’s Rhymes. With the board being cut, we not only lost a new and unique vehicle, but a weapon too. Maybe in “Grand Theft Auto VI” we’ll be able to skateboard and kickflip down some stairs.
Even though GTA V is ten years old, here’s a spoiler alert for the ending of the game. When we get to the final showdown, we’re given three choices and must pick one. The first choice has Franklin killing Michael, the second choice will kill Trevor. Our third choice is not killing either, but the original choice was going to play out a little different. Before being cut, the third choice would have had Franklin killed by Lamar. In the game's code people have found unused animation and dialog lines for Lamar, with some of the dialog having him interact with pedestrians as well as Trevor and Michael after killing Franklin.
Most things are cut from games long before release, but “Grand Theft Auto III” made changes just weeks before launch. GTA III was released on October 23, 2001, just weeks after the events of 9/11 unfolded, shaking America to its core. With the attacks, a few things had to be cut from the game as they were a little too close to reality at the time. One mission that was cut from the game revolved around an extremist attack. Along with it, some dialogue from pedestrians and the radio were cut, as well as vehicle details. The cover art for the US release was also modified, however Europe received the unchanged art. While only about 1% of the game was cut due to these attacks, the fact that the turnaround was so fast is amazing and a rare example of real world events causing changes to a game.
Vice City introduced us to the silly side mission Pizza Boy which had players take on the role of a pizza delivery boy and deliver pizza to customers within a set amount of time. This side mission was going to be featured in “Grand Theft Auto San Andreas”, but was ultimately cut. While these iconic side missions were removed, they were still in San Andreas in spirit. The Courier missions are rather similar to the Pizza Boy missions. S,ure they may not be as silly looking, but the concept is still there. Seeing CJ on the goofy looking pizza boy scooter would’ve been rather funny.
It’s pretty rare to see GTA cut things due to real world events, but social circumstances caused a character in “Grand Theft Auto Vice City” in the “Grand Theft Auto Trilogy” to be changed. Phil Cassidy is an arms dealer who is modeled as a stereotypical gun-toting redneck. Cassidy was clearly there to poke fun at a certain subset of people in America, so seeing the flag that is often associated with this group going missing in the trilogy was a bit shocking. However, at the time the trilogy was being released, the confederate flag was starting to seem like a symbol for hate, so the developers opted to leave it out..
With the series being over twenty years old, it’s no surprise that a number of planned missions did not make it into the final games. We already talked about how 9/11 affected a mission being cut, but there are many more. In GTA II there was another redneck mission which had a Jeep being stolen for Billy Bob Bean. GTA III had a set of missions and a character Darkel cut, however some of these missions were later used, but slightly changed. A very cool sounding mission was cut from Vice City, where the player would pick a car up for Steve Scott for his film and complete set tasks. San Andreas has a good number of cut missions including the iconic “hot coffee”. While GTA IV and V have few cut missions, GTA Online probably has the most. Who knows, maybe we’ll see these missions in future GTA games in some way.
“Grand Theft Auto” is a series known for having amazing soundtracks. Each radio station feels unique and the games have music for everyone, with everything from pop to rock, rap, and country music. With the release of the “Grand Theft Auto Trilogy”, some of the music didn’t make its way to the remakes, and they aren’t just missing just one or two songs. Vice City and San Andreas are missing over 15 songs each due to licensing issues. It’s strange not being able to hear “Wow” by Kate Bush while speeding on a motorcycle at night in Vice City…
There are tons of ways to make money in San Andreas. Owning property is one way to get passive income with businesses you can operate on the side. And what better way to make money than to own a casino? Players would have had the opportunity to own their own personal casino and reap the benefits for themselves, but the option was ultimately removed. Drug dealing was another side business that didn’t make it into the final game. While this wasn't fleshed out very far during development, it would’ve made sense in the world of GTA.
“Grand Theft Auto” is known for having a ton of weapons for players to create destructive mayhem with. “Grand Theft Auto V” has some interesting cut weapons, including some that are rather common. A grenade launcher, assault rifle, and rubber gun for example were all removed from the game. Simple melee weapons like a wrench, shovel, and fire extinguisher were cut as well, some of which even had stats. Some of these cut weapons were eventually brought back in an update for GTA Online. The promotional art for GTA V even featured some weapons that didn’t make the game, however it’s unknown if the weapons in the art were ever meant to be included in the first place.
Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we’ll be looking at 10 things cut from GTA games. For this list, we’ll be looking at some interesting cut content throughout the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise. With the series dating back to 1997, it’s no surprise that many cool and interesting ideas have been scrapped over the years. Steal a car and make your way to the comments to let us know of any cut content we may have missed.
No Children
“Grand Theft Auto III” (2001)The “Grand Theft Auto” series is known for having a lived-in feel to its cities, but have you ever noticed that you never see any kids around? Well, originally children were planned to be in the game, but were later cut. Early beat versions of GTA III had children and school buses roaming around Liberty City. This was obviously cut to avoid controversy of having children end up in a not so great situation. Even with the school buses and children missing on the roads, you can still find the bus model in the game. If we go to 8 Ball’s compound we can see a few crushed buses laying around. Maybe all the children are at Bullworth Academy.
Kick Push
“Grand Theft Auto San Andreas” (2004)Pulling off sick jumps and flips at the skatepark on a BMX bike in San Andreas is pretty fun, but what if we could ride a skateboard! While skateboarding wouldn’t have been as polished or fleshed out as “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”, it would’ve been nice to be able to kick push throughout San Andreas. The skateboard wasn’t only going to be a mode of transportation, it was also going to be used as a melee weapon. The skateboard was going to be introduced during the mission Mass Dogg’s Rhymes. With the board being cut, we not only lost a new and unique vehicle, but a weapon too. Maybe in “Grand Theft Auto VI” we’ll be able to skateboard and kickflip down some stairs.
Playable Lamar
“Grand Theft Auto V” (2013)Even though GTA V is ten years old, here’s a spoiler alert for the ending of the game. When we get to the final showdown, we’re given three choices and must pick one. The first choice has Franklin killing Michael, the second choice will kill Trevor. Our third choice is not killing either, but the original choice was going to play out a little different. Before being cut, the third choice would have had Franklin killed by Lamar. In the game's code people have found unused animation and dialog lines for Lamar, with some of the dialog having him interact with pedestrians as well as Trevor and Michael after killing Franklin.
Extremist Attacks
“Grand Theft Auto III” (2021)Most things are cut from games long before release, but “Grand Theft Auto III” made changes just weeks before launch. GTA III was released on October 23, 2001, just weeks after the events of 9/11 unfolded, shaking America to its core. With the attacks, a few things had to be cut from the game as they were a little too close to reality at the time. One mission that was cut from the game revolved around an extremist attack. Along with it, some dialogue from pedestrians and the radio were cut, as well as vehicle details. The cover art for the US release was also modified, however Europe received the unchanged art. While only about 1% of the game was cut due to these attacks, the fact that the turnaround was so fast is amazing and a rare example of real world events causing changes to a game.
Pizza Boy
“Grand Theft Auto San Andreas” (2004)Vice City introduced us to the silly side mission Pizza Boy which had players take on the role of a pizza delivery boy and deliver pizza to customers within a set amount of time. This side mission was going to be featured in “Grand Theft Auto San Andreas”, but was ultimately cut. While these iconic side missions were removed, they were still in San Andreas in spirit. The Courier missions are rather similar to the Pizza Boy missions. S,ure they may not be as silly looking, but the concept is still there. Seeing CJ on the goofy looking pizza boy scooter would’ve been rather funny.
Confederate Flag
“Grand Theft Auto Trilogy” (2021)It’s pretty rare to see GTA cut things due to real world events, but social circumstances caused a character in “Grand Theft Auto Vice City” in the “Grand Theft Auto Trilogy” to be changed. Phil Cassidy is an arms dealer who is modeled as a stereotypical gun-toting redneck. Cassidy was clearly there to poke fun at a certain subset of people in America, so seeing the flag that is often associated with this group going missing in the trilogy was a bit shocking. However, at the time the trilogy was being released, the confederate flag was starting to seem like a symbol for hate, so the developers opted to leave it out..
Deleted Missions
“Grand Theft Auto” Series (1997 - 2021)With the series being over twenty years old, it’s no surprise that a number of planned missions did not make it into the final games. We already talked about how 9/11 affected a mission being cut, but there are many more. In GTA II there was another redneck mission which had a Jeep being stolen for Billy Bob Bean. GTA III had a set of missions and a character Darkel cut, however some of these missions were later used, but slightly changed. A very cool sounding mission was cut from Vice City, where the player would pick a car up for Steve Scott for his film and complete set tasks. San Andreas has a good number of cut missions including the iconic “hot coffee”. While GTA IV and V have few cut missions, GTA Online probably has the most. Who knows, maybe we’ll see these missions in future GTA games in some way.
Missing Music
“Grand Theft Auto Trilogy” (2021)“Grand Theft Auto” is a series known for having amazing soundtracks. Each radio station feels unique and the games have music for everyone, with everything from pop to rock, rap, and country music. With the release of the “Grand Theft Auto Trilogy”, some of the music didn’t make its way to the remakes, and they aren’t just missing just one or two songs. Vice City and San Andreas are missing over 15 songs each due to licensing issues. It’s strange not being able to hear “Wow” by Kate Bush while speeding on a motorcycle at night in Vice City…
Casino
“Grand Theft Auto San Andreas” (2004)There are tons of ways to make money in San Andreas. Owning property is one way to get passive income with businesses you can operate on the side. And what better way to make money than to own a casino? Players would have had the opportunity to own their own personal casino and reap the benefits for themselves, but the option was ultimately removed. Drug dealing was another side business that didn’t make it into the final game. While this wasn't fleshed out very far during development, it would’ve made sense in the world of GTA.
Weapon Wheel
“Grand Theft Auto V” (2013)“Grand Theft Auto” is known for having a ton of weapons for players to create destructive mayhem with. “Grand Theft Auto V” has some interesting cut weapons, including some that are rather common. A grenade launcher, assault rifle, and rubber gun for example were all removed from the game. Simple melee weapons like a wrench, shovel, and fire extinguisher were cut as well, some of which even had stats. Some of these cut weapons were eventually brought back in an update for GTA Online. The promotional art for GTA V even featured some weapons that didn’t make the game, however it’s unknown if the weapons in the art were ever meant to be included in the first place.
