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GTA 5 may be the most advanced Grand Theft Auto title ever released, but it also cut back on several features from its predecessors. Part of this was due to the technical limitations imposed on the game due to the larger map. The game was initially launched on the PS3 and Xbox 360, both old-gen at the time. This meant that Rockstar had to cut many corners to make such a modern title run on the consoles.
However, Rockstar never really improved all the downgraded features with the release of the game on PC and later consoles. The later ports were instead focused on graphics, technical improvements, and other quality-of-life upgrades.
So here are five features that felt worse in Grand Theft Auto 5.
5 advanced features that Rockstar downgraded in GTA 5
1) Missions and activities
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Grand Theft Auto 5 does not have many interesting activities from previous games, like Bowling, Air Hockey, Pool, and more. It also doesn't have side missions like Vigilante, one of the best features of GTA 4. While Tennis and Golf are acceptable side activities, Yoga serves no purpose.
Players are introduced to Yoga with one of the worst missions in the series, leaving them with a negative impression of this side activity. You also can't dine out at restaurants or fast food joints, as most buildings are not enterable.
2) Police
The Police in GTA 5 feel a lot more dumber compared to that of Grand Theft Auto 4. This issue is highlighted during police chases, which feels much easier in the newer game. Cops can't keep up with the protagonists and they don't make smart maneuvers to try and take you down. The wanted system has also been left in an unfinished state.
Sometimes, you'll get a wanted level almost instantly, even if there were no witnesses to your crime. The police also make little attempt to arrest the player like in previous games and move in to kill the protagonists almost immediately.
Meanwhile, despite having multiple types of law enforcement units and vehicles, you'll mostly find the standard police cruisers during chases.
3) Combat
The gunplay in GTA 5 feels vastly inferior to its immediate predecessor, Grand Theft Auto 4. This is mostly due to how fragile the NPCs are and how they react to damage. They also go down pretty easily when hit with a melee attack. The melee combat feels quite simplistic, and it lacks the intuitive controls and fluid animations of the previous game.
Crouching isn't an option anymore, and the guns feel way too accurate. Many of these downgrades were improved upon in Red Dead Redemption 2, which could imply that we're getting these features back in GTA 6.
4) Driving
Although the driving mechanics in GTA 4 may have seemed frustrating to some players, it was still much more satisfactory than that of Grand Theft Auto 5. The newer game made the whole thing much simpler, but in doing so, it became boring. Making high-speed turns is not as exhilarating any more, and police chases don't make you tense like they did in the previous game.
Much of this was due to technical limitations. As mentioned before, GTA 5 was initially launched on the aging PS3 and Xbox 360, and having so many vehicles on such a large map limited how complex the physics could be made.
5) Ragdoll
Like with driving, the ragdoll physics was also made simpler, most likely due to technical limitations. NPCs go limp almost instantly when hit with a vehicle or melee attack in Grand Theft Auto 5. They also no longer react to a vehicle coming at them. GTA 4 is often regarded as having the best ragdoll physics in any video game, let alone the Grand Theft Auto series.
NPCs would be thrown around realistically, and they would react to gunshots or melee attacks in a more believable manner. This feature can be brought back to Grand Theft Auto 5 with mods on PC, so it's unclear why Rockstar never improved it with the PC release.
Check out our other Grand Theft Auto articles here:
Reasons to replay Story Mode || Canceled story mode DLCs || Insane missions in the series || Ned Luke's comments leave fans divided || 5 mods to try out before GTA 6
