Play Grand Theft Auto Online

I picked up Grand Theft Auto for the Game Boy Color back in 1999, a time when handheld games were mostly simple or scaled down. Rockstar Games released this version, and it was one of the few attempts to bring an open world crime sim to a pocket system. It felt ambitious for the hardware, even if it had to make some compromises.

You control a criminal trying to rise through the ranks by completing missions. The main goal is to earn money and respect by taking jobs from payphones; these range from stealing specific cars to causing chaos in timed rampages. You drive around a grid based city, screen by screen, with police chasing you down after any crime. The pacing is relentless, and the small screen makes evasion tricky. It feels tense and unpredictable, especially when a simple joyride spirals into a city wide pursuit.