5 things to know about GTA 3 Dreamcast port by fans

The GTA 3 Dreamcast port is currently one of the most popular topics within the OG gaming community. Even though Rockstar Games’ 2001 title has been available on various gaming platforms, it was never officially released on the Sega Dreamcast. That said, the studio had initially developed the project for the Dreamcast, before making the final decision to move to the PlayStation 2.

Nonetheless, Grand Theft Auto fans have now taken the matter into their own hands and are working on the GTA 3 Dreamcast port. This article lists five interesting things that you should know about the project.

Note: Some parts of this article are subjective and only reflect the writer’s opinions.

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5 intriguing details about the GTA 3 Dreamcast port by fans

1) It recently got an alpha release

On December 30, 2024, a YouTube channel named Esppiral V (YouTube/@esppiral) announced that the GTA 3 Dreamcast port is now available for alpha version download. The channel also shared a two-minute-45-second-long video demonstrating the gameplay.

As the project is still under development, the gameplay is far from refined. The video did show some lag and stuttering. Nonetheless, being the first attempt of its kind, it is only expected to improve over time.

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2) The game is based on the PC version

An in-game shot from the Grand Theft Auto 3 PC version (Image via Rockstar Games)

Even though Grand Theft Auto 3 was originally coded for the Sega Dreamcast, fans could not find the code as it is Rockstar Games’ property. Nonetheless, the community used the PC version of the popular GTA game to make the Dreamcast port.

A Sega Dreamcast developer named Falco Girgis (X/@falco_girgis) described the GTA 3 Dreamcast project as follows:

“I want everyone to take note that this is NOT a port of the PS2 version. This is a port of the PC version, which has extra content, increased draw distance, improved textures, and other things that have actually increased the challenge here”

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3) The developers have managed to reduce the size of the game

The entirety of the GTA III Dreamcast port is on the Dreamcast at only 406MBs! byu/Trick_Talk6386 indreamcast

According to a Reddit user named NRU07 (u/Trick_Talk6386), the GTA 3 Dreamcast project is only 406 MB in size. To put this in perspective, here's how much space the game takes up on other platforms:

• PlayStation 2: 1.5 GB
• Xbox: 1.5 - 2 GB
• PC: 500 MB
• Android: 1.3 GB
• iOS: 738.2 MB

The fact that the third-party Dreamcast developers managed to make the game smaller than the original PC version is impressive. That being said, the size of the final version may vary.

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4) The gameplay is getting better with time

As the development progresses, the GTA 3 Dreamcast port is getting better. Since it is based on the PC version (which has some graphical improvements over the PlayStation 2 version), the fan-made project also looks better than the first official version from Rockstar Games.

Despite having some optimization issues, the Dreamcast port has a better draw distance, 480p resolution, an increased number of pedestrians and vehicles, and many other improved features. Keep in mind that the comparison is only justifiable between the PlayStation 2 version and the ported Dreamcast version.

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5) The project can pave the way for Vice City Dreamcast port

Obbe Vermeij shares new hope for GTA fans (Image via X)

While fans continue to work on the GTA 3 Dreamcast port, Obbe Vermeij (who was the former Technical Director at Rockstar Games) stated that if this project succeeds, then the third-party developers can also port Grand Theft Auto Vice City.

Obbe called Grand Theft Auto 3 and Vice City “basically the same game,” catching the attention of Dreamcast fans. While the GTA 3 port takes shape, we can also expect a Vice City Dreamcast port in the future.

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