Over the years, the Grand Theft Auto franchise has become a cultural icon. The series has become the 13th best-selling video game franchise in the world, and has led to many debates. Almost every gamer has heard of or tried one of the various Grand Theft Auto titles, and Grand Theft Auto 5 has continuously brought in revenue through GTA Online. The franchise is one of the best-known in gaming, but some entries have been forgotten. Specifically, the handheld-only Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars has been left in the dust.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars was released in 2009 for the Nintendo DS and the PlayStation Portable to critical acclaim, and it currently holds a 93 percent on Metacritic. The title was a follow-up to Grand Theft Auto 4 examining the power struggle between the Liberty City Triads, and told an engaging story around a young Triad member named Huang Lee. The gameplay felt similar to the original Grand Theft Auto titles, and it received an iOS release in 2010 (followed by one for Android in 2014), but it deserves a larger-scale remaster from Rockstar Games.
The Story of Chinatown Wars
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars took place in a scaled-down version of Liberty City from Grand Theft Auto 4, in which Huang Lee receives a family heirloom sword from his recently murdered father. He wanted to give it to his uncle We "Kenny" Lee, but is left for dead while assailants steal the sword. What follows is a power struggle for the Triad across the city as Huang Lee gets pulled deeper into the drug trade.
Throughout the story, players encounter a host of different Triad members and corrupt individuals. They will have to navigate around GTA characters like the corrupt LCPD detective Wade Heston and various heads of the Triad families. The story is filled with twists and turns that will reshape how the player sees certain characters, and it was praised for its storyline. Fans of Grand Theft Auto will feel right at home, as the game has everything they've come to expect from Rockstar.
A Remaster Should Avoid Previous Grand Theft Auto Woes
Grand Theft Auto remasters have not had the best track record and that is something that a Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars remaster would need to navigate around. Beyond the multiple releases of Grand Theft Auto 5, there has only been one large-scale remaster in recent years: Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy The Definitive Edition.
The Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy remaster came out in 2021, and was a compilation of Grand Theft Auto 3, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Three beloved titles getting remastered seemed like an easy win for Rockstar, but the reality was a disappointment for many fans. The remasters were headed up by Grove Street Games, which oversaw many previous mobile ports including Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Fans of Grand Theft Auto were excited, but also skeptical as the studio did not have much experience with full-fledged remasters.
Upon release, Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy was marred with technical difficulties. The title became one of the lowest-scoring games on Metacritic that year, and many believed it was far from the definitive editions it claimed to have. Many players demanded refunds, and it has put a stain on the brand as Rockstar moved on to release a new version of Grand Theft Auto 5 amid ongoing development for Grand Theft Auto 6.
What a Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Remaster Could Do
The previous Grand Theft Auto remasters were far from perfect, and a Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars remaster would need to rectify that. Right now, Rockstar Games is hard at work developing Grand Theft Auto 6, so providing another Grand Theft Auto title to fill the void would go a long way to keeping fans engaged. Until now, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars has exclusively been a handheld or mobile title, but that could all change with a full-fledged remaster.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is often forgotten when talking about great open-world titles, and that may be due to its limited audience. If fans did not play games on DS, PSP, or mobile platforms, they most likely never paid attention to Chinatown Wars. The title was met with praise and many claimed it was a high point for the Grand Theft Auto franchise, but it is still too often forgotten.
If Rockstar Games chose to remaster Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, it could release the title on the major consoles and give it the audience it deserves. The game was made with touch controls in mind, so Rockstar would need to alter bits of the gameplay to make it work with controllers, specifically for elements like grenades. However, doing so would be a worthwhile way to let players traverse through an exciting crime story in classic Grand Theft Auto fashion.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars was great and deserves all the attention it can get. The best way to gain an audience would be if Rockstar chose to remaster the experience. Doing so would also would provide a Grand Theft Auto title to fill the void while fans wait for Grand Theft Auto 6. As long as it avoids the missteps of previous remasters, a return to Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars may be just what the franchise needs.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is available now on iOS and Android.