Who is the most sympathetic GTA protagonist?

Sympathetic protagonists are a rarity within the GTA series.

The vast majority of GTA protagonists are ruthless killers who will do anything they're assigned. None of them are morally good, but one of them has to be better than the rest. As far as the term "sympathetic" goes in this article, it simply refers to the protagonist with the most morally good intentions.

There are well over a dozen protagonists in the GTA series, with some of them being beyond detestable as far as human beings go. However, there are a few interesting protagonists that do seem more sympathetic than others.

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Which GTA protagonist is the most sympathetic?

Some protagonists have good intentions (Image via Patrick Brown)

It should go without saying that all GTA protagonists are more "bad" than "good." However, it's not a black and white world. There are shades of gray to many of these characters, and that's the fascinating part of the discussion.

The mute protagonists

Claude does what he's told; nothing more, nothing less (Image via GTA Reddit)

It's hard to gauge how sympathetic a mute protagonist can be. They simply do what they're told, regardless of how brutal it is. Some mute protagonists, like GTA 2's Claude Speed, do more detestable acts than others.

As a result, the GTA 1 to GTA 3 protagonists aren't all that sympathetic. They do varying levels of evil acts, but the player doesn't see any good intentions from them.

The GTA Online protagonist is a little more sympathetic (they did save the world, after all), but they still participate in some truly heinous acts for the sake of making money. As they're mute, the player can only self-insert themselves into them, which doesn't genuinely give them a sympathetic background.

The GTA 5 protagonists

They're fun protagonists, but they're not sympathetic (Image via Rockstar Games)

The next interesting topic to discuss pertains to the GTA 5 protagonists. It should go without saying that Trevor Philips isn't sympathetic. While he has his moments, he's undeniably cruel and too psychopathic at times.

Michael De Santa is a snake who would gladly betray people to better himself. While the canon ending to GTA 5 is pleasant, it doesn't change the fact that Michael committed several criminal acts before the game even starts. He's not full-blown evil by any means, but there are more sympathetic protagonists.

Franklin Clinton is an interesting character. While he's not as twisted as his two friends, he still goes along with whatever is given to him. Franklin doesn't have much agency to do things on his own terms. He usually has to be convinced by other characters to do the right thing (like saving Lamar).

The other HD universe protagonists

The GTA 4 protagonists (Image via Rockstar Games)

The HD Liberty City protagonists vary in how sympathetic they are. Somebody like Johnny Klebitz lives the biker lifestyle unapologetically, but he also acts pleasantly toward characters like Roman (despite the situation). He's a nuanced character that gets himself into unfavorable situations but occasionally has the right intentions.

Luis Fernando Lopez is arguably the most sympathetic protagonist in this group. He regularly gives money to his mother, and he's loyal to Gay Tony. He still does what he's tasked to do, but he's not as heinous as some of the other protagonists in how he does it.

Niko Bellic did a lot of messed-up things before GTA 4 takes place. Human trafficking is a serious offense, but Niko does try to live a more normal life in Liberty City. It doesn't work out, and he ends up killing a lot of people.

The final protagonist in this section is Huang Lee. He's a spoiled brat, but he's not malicious. However, he also doesn't do much good in GTA Chinatown Wars in the grand scheme of things.

The 3D protagonists

The 3D universe's protagonists vary wildly in terms of how sympathetic they are (Image via Daniel Scholes)

There are only a few protagonists left from this point on. Tommy Vercetti is a classic gangster who does various crimes to further his own ambitions. It's admirable, but not sympathetic.

GTA Advance's Mike is similar to Claude in that he does whatever he's told to do, except he's loyal to a fault. He's fairly sympathetic, all things considered.

Toni Cipriani is one of the farthest from being considered a sympathetic protagonist. Between bombing an entire city and causing permanent damage to doing questionable things to impress his mother, it's safe to say that he's not a good person.

CJ is one of the most sympathetic protagonists, yet many players tend to overlook his crueler actions. Still, he is a great friend to have. However, there is only one GTA protagonist that can be considered more sympathetic.

The most sympathetic protagonist

Victor Vance has the best intentions out of the GTA protagonists (Image via GTA Wiki)

Victor Vance never wanted to be a criminal. Unlike all of the other GTA protagonists, he tried to live an honest life by serving in the army to earn enough money for his sick brother. However, he's forced into a bad position by Sgt. Jerry Martinez.

Whilst becoming a massive drug kingpin isn't morally good, he still does what he can to help those around him. He gets Pete Vance the money he needs, and constantly helps Lance Vance whenever the latter does something stupid.

Note: This article reflects the writer's personal views.