The Best GTA Protagonists, Ranked

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Spanning over 16 titles, the Grand Theft Auto series has garnered quite a reputation during its time as one of gaming’s seminal franchises. No matter which entry you visit, you’ll find a sprawling open world filled with high-speed car chases, daring heists, intense gunfights and a huge metropolis to explore. But while carnage and police pursuits are largely Grand Theft Auto’s bread and butter, it’s not the only thing fans rely on Rockstar to provide.

Alongside a fully interactive sandbox, Grand Theft Auto games are lorded for their stories. Across over two decades of releases, the franchise has transformed into a crime saga like no other, telling the tales of an array of ambitious criminals completing seemingly impossible scores, intercepting seedy criminal underworlds and usurping feared crime lords. And as a result, the protagonists of these games have become iconic.

Whether it’s Niko’s silent reflections about the cycle of revenge or Trevor’s uncanny ability to wake up in random places butt naked, GTA’s roster of leading thieves and gangsters have struck a chord with fans, becoming synonymous with both the franchise and the video game space as a whole. So, let’s take a look at the best of the bunch. Below, we’ll rank Grand Theft Auto’s best protagonists, giving you a rundown of the franchise’s most notable playable characters ahead of GTA 6.

A former soldier expelled from the ranks after being framed by his superior officer, shortly after we meet Vic Vance in Vice City Stories, he’s out on the streets with no job or home. Looking for work, he begins to use his skills as a soldier to take the criminal underworld of Vice City by storm, allying with his brother, Lance, and teaming with various crime families to build his