5 huge differences between GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance

GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance are two different isometric games from the Grand Theft Auto series that were made long after the early 2D Universe era games. Advance came out in 2004 on the Game Boy Advance while Chinatown Wars was released in 2009 on the Nintendo DS and later, the PSP. It was also ported over to iOS in 2010 and Android in 2014.

The games are often compared as both feature an isometric camera perspective, but in terms of gameplay, they're vastly different. In light of that, we've compiled a list of differences between GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance.

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5 GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance differences

1) GBA vs DS/PSP/Mobile

The first and most obvious difference between GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance is the difference in platforms. The former was made for the Nintendo DS, the Sony PSP (PlayStation Portable), as well as mobile devices (Android/iOS). On the other hand, the latter is only available on the Nintendo Game Boy Advance. This is why the graphics and gameplay are so distinct between these games.

GTA Chinatown Wars on DS looks and plays a bit different from the PSP, as the former has inferior graphics but boasts touchscreen controls. The mobile versions utilize the best of both worlds, featuring improved graphics as well as touchscreen controls.

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2) 3D vs 2D

GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance are both played from an isometric perspective, but while the former is set in a 3D game world with 2D character sprites, the latter is completely 2D. This is due to the technical limitations of the platforms the games were created for. However, Grand Theft Auto Advance makes use of some tricks to produce a fake 3D effect at times.

High buildings and structures use a 3D shifting effect to move along with the camera. Vehicles make use of different sprites to seemingly lean left and right when turning and even turn transparent when going below a bridge. Meanwhile, Chinatown Wars used cel shaded graphics in an actual 3D environment.

This is more prominent in later versions, such as the PSP and Android port, which toned down the cel shading in favor of better 3D modeling.

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3) 3D Universe vs HD Universe

The GTA Advance map is larger than that of GTA 3 and Liberty City Stories (Image via Rockstar Games)

Both GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance take place in Liberty City, but their universes are different. Despite being 2D, Advance is set in the 3D Universe, which means that you'll get to see the same Liberty City as found in GTA 3 and Liberty City Stories. However, the map is almost three times bigger and there are no interiors.

On the other hand, the map featured in Chinatown Wars is a smaller and slightly different variation of the HD Universe Liberty City as seen in GTA 4. Alderney is missing, and several roads and places have been altered to fit the isometric perspective. Interiors are also largely absent except for safehouses, which are a series of 2D pictures presented in an interactive manner.

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4) Feature-rich vs barebones

GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance are vastly different when it comes to gameplay and it's here that the former outclasses the latter. GTA Chinatown Wars has some impressive features that make the game feel much more immersive. These include hotwiring/hacking cars, making Molotovs, a drug dealing minigame, and more.

Advance has none of these and is basically a lighter experience than what you can expect from a Grand Theft Auto game. In fact, it's quite similar to the first GTA game although the open-world map is much smaller.

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5) Story and gameplay length

GTA Chinatown Wars offers more engaging gameplay (Image via GTA Wiki || Rockstar Games)

Both GTA Chinatown Wars and GTA Advance are relatively short when their campaigns are compared to the mainline Grand Theft Auto titles. However, Chinatown Wars still offers a few hours more than Advance in terms of the main story as well as all the side content. The drug-dealing minigame, mentioned before, will keep you engaged for hours.

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