RetroGaming

This is still the best GTA game, imo. I've had people tell me for years that um actually GTA V's map is bigger, but San Andreas really feels like 2 or 3 times the size of V. Not just because of the massively varied world space, but because of how jam packed the world is with goodies for you to discover. I had already beaten the game by the time I found out about the courier missions and horse betting. The fact that you could go into almost any interior in the game for optional robbery missions, even if they were just the same few interiors recycled, really made the map feel lived-in. They did a perfect job of giving the game a massive sense of scale without making the world so big that half of the missions are just driving for miles on end. This is definitely subjective, but I think the car physics are the best in the series, too. GTA V has extremely fluid driving, don't get me wrong, but San Andreas has that perfect balance between realistic weight and arcadey gameplay. You can turn on a dime, but you're probably going to roll your car. Still the longest GTA story, too. Did you know the casino heist missions are completely optional?