Every Grand Theft Auto Playable Character, Ranked Worst To Best

Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto has defined the standard for open-world games since the release of GTA 3 in 2001. Over the years, the franchise has put players in the shoes of ruthless killers, misguided gangsters, and everything in between. GTA has one of the largest cast of playable characters out of every story-driven adventure games ever released, but which one is the best?

GTA has seen multiple facelifts throughout its history. GTA 5, for example, let gamers play as three protagonists instead of focusing on one, and Rockstar likely has even more unexpected plans in store for its IP with the heavily rumored launch of GTA 6.

The series has 12 playable protagonists, not counting any of the multi-choice characters featured in the original GTA, GTA 2, and the GTA: London expansions. Players’ character choice in those titles didn’t affect the story, which made them nothing more than avatars. Beginning from GTA 3, here’s every series protagonist ranked from worst to best.

#12 – Huang Lee (GTA: Chinatown Wars)

Huang’s entire character is centered around a plot for revenge in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. When the immigrant arrives in America, he begins scheming how to kill the person who murdered his entire family, which he later discovers was someone close to him. The whole narrative is cliché, and the handheld-only release of Chinatown Wars made the game fly under the radar compared to other GTA installments.

#11 – Claude Speed (GTA 3)

While Grand Theft Auto 3 was praised for its technical achievements, its silent protagonist Claude severely lacked a personality. Hardly anything is known about his backstory, other than his life’s commitment to getting paid to do crimes. It’s unclear if Rockstar wanted players to reflect themselves onto Claude, but his stoneface and silence throughout all of his violent missions make him seem like a cold-blooded psychopath. He’s like a shady-drifter version of The Legend of Zelda’s Link, but much less likable.

#10 – Toni Cipriani (GTA: Liberty City Stories)

Toni is the main character of GTA: Liberty City Stories and appears as a non-playable character in GTA 3. Little is known about Toni’s background, other than that he was born into the Leone crime family and that he’s incredibly loyal to his mother.

His story revolves around earning the respect of mob boss Salvatore Leone while trying not to land behind bars. His entire persona feels like a knock-off of Tony Soprano, which lands him low on the list.

#9 – Victor Vance (GTA: Vice City Stories)

Victor Vance is the noblest person on the list. Players learn that the Vice City Stories protagonist joined the military to help pay for his sick brother’s treatment, but his service ends abruptly due to a corrupt sergeant. That turn of events leads Victor to a life of crime, which eventually leads to his demise. He’s a short-lived character, but Rockstar padded him with enough backstory to make him interesting.

#8 – Johnny Klebitz (GTA: The Lost and The Damned)

Johnny is the protagonist of GTA 4’s DLC, The Lost and the Damned. He’s a recovering addict who is also a high-ranking member of the biker gang “The Lost MC” that gets involved with all sorts of seedy characters from corrupt politicians and rival gangsters. His character borders on pure parody, but he has a few human moments that make him more memorable than the GTA characters lower on the list.

He appears as a minor antagonist in GTA 5, where he’s slipped into a crystal meth addiction. His life comes to a tragic end at the hands of a deranged Trevor Phillips, making Johnny more of a background character than other series protagonists.

#7 – Tommy Vercetti (GTA: Vice City)

Vice City’s Tommy Vercetti is essentially a ruthless criminal that will stop at nothing to get his way. There are striking similarities between him and Claude, but Rockstar chose to give the protagonist a voice (Ray Liotta’s voice, that is) which gave him slightly more charisma.

Tommy is a career crook who is released from prison at the start of Vice City, and players need to help him become the kingpin of the criminal underground in fictional-Miami. Very little is known about his background, which makes it hard to sympathize with him, but he perfectly fits the role of a merciless crime boss. He’s the Tony Montana of the GTA universe.

#6 – Luis Lopez (GTA: The Ballad of Gay Tony)

Luis Lopez is the main character of GTA 4’s DLC, The Ballad of Gay Tony. Despite his brief stint in the GTA universe, his character becomes refreshingly developed at the end of the GTA 4 expansion pack.

Luis is a gangster-turned-bodyguard who gets involved with famous nightclub owner Tony Prince. The banter between the two is some of the best in the franchise, and these conversations peel the curtain back on Luis’s criminal history. The Ballad of Gay Tony also gives players a glimpse of his family life with dialogue with his mother. It’s a shame his character wasn’t expanded upon after the DLC.

#5 – Franklin Clinton (GTA 5)

Franklin Clinton is one of the three main characters featured in GTA 5 that ends up having the most uplifting narrative arcs in the game out of the trio, despite the violence he has to go through to get there. He goes through a rags-to-riches journey when he gets involved with fellow GTA 5 protagonists Michael De Santa and Trevor Phillips.

Franklin is sick of his life of petty crime, and he gets a taste of the high life when he goes into shady business with Michael and Trevor. Both of the other two protagonists become fond of Franklin because of his willingness to help them with their schemes. Franklin’s relationship with Michael and Trevor eventually become a stepping stone for his own gain, which can play out in a few different ways thanks to GTA 5‘s multiple endings. Franklin’s arc is satisfying, but he often seems just along for the ride, making him slightly less memorable than a handful of other characters.

#4 – Trevor Phillips (GTA 5)

Trevor Phillips is a textbook psychopath that serves as the comic relief for the ugly story that unfolds at the end of GTA 5. He carried on the erratic and murderous tendencies of past protagonists, like Tommy and Claude, while also being unquestionably loyal to his friends. It’s that dichotomy of his insanity and unwavering devotion that made him into one of the most beloved GTA characters ever. Plus, it’s irresistibly hilarious when players switch into Trevor’s perspective in GTA 5 to find him either in big trouble or asleep in a gutter. He’s one of gaming’s most iconic wildcards.

#3 – Michael De Santa (GTA 5)

GTA 5‘s Michael De Santa is one of the most well-written characters in the series’ history because of the realistic emotional struggles he goes through, despite how exaggerated they are to fit the game’s plot. The retired bank robber has it all: a family, a mansion, and enough money to last him a lifetime, yet that still isn’t enough.

Michael is a caricature of a person completely ruled by their ego who’s never pleased with what they have. He will stop at nothing to get what he wants, even if he has to step all over his closest friends and family. He might be hard to love, but he’s the embodiment of the sheer lust for wealth and infamy that has been at the core of the GTA series since the very beginning.

#2 – Niko Bellic (GTA 4)

While there might be plenty of side-splitting moments in GTA 4, they’re all a backdrop to the tragic story arc of Niko Bellic. He leaves his life a crime in Eastern Europe for a fresh start in Liberty City but is immediately sucked back into the underground.

GTA 4 does an incredible job at depicting this vicious cycle by having players complete a few favors for shady characters with Niko until his entire life turns into exactly what he was running away from. This eventually spirals out of control and results in a horrific ending that not even bowling with cousin Roman can fix.

#1 – Carl “CJ” Johnson (GTA: San Andreas)

The creation of CJ was a turning point for the GTA series as a whole. Rockstar moved away from the vague background stories that propped up the psychopathic protagonists of past releases, like Tommy and Claude, towards deeper characters.

While the GTA: San Andreas protagonist’s roots weren’t crystal clear, the game did an excellent job filling players in with context about his history with the Grove Street Families. Through conversations, gamers learn that CJ’s mother was killed in a shooting, and that event greatly impacted CJ’s actions throughout San Andreas. CJ had more aspirations rather than being just being a cold-blooded killer. These complex character motives shaped Rockstar’s approach for the cast of GTA 4 and GTA 5.