Talking Point: Is The GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition Finally Worth Buying In 2024?

Rockstar Games surprised everyone last week by revealing a new update for Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition out of the blue - nearly two years since the previous one arrived on Xbox consoles.

Although the patch notes were very minimal, the update itself was anything but, adding in a couple of new features alongside a huge number of tweaks and fixes that ultimately result in a better game and a more nostalgic experience.

We've already highlighted some comparison images of the new "Classic Lighting" mode elsewhere on Pure Xbox, so we'll drop a link to our previous coverage below, but the TL:DR is this - it looks so much better than it did before. Instead of the realistic lighting style that the Trilogy originally employed, each game now more closely resembles how it was on the original Xbox and PS2, especially in the case of San Andreas with its warm orange hue.

Beyond that though, there's still so much to like about the Trilogy post-update. Little things, like animations for the way CJ swims and rides his bike in San Andreas look more natural and authentic, and there have been apparent changes to cloud and fog that give the world a more realistic appearance. Remember when you could stand at the top of Mount Chiliad and see the edges of the map? It still can happen, but it's definitely better now.

The visual and collision bugs have been cleaned up considerably as well, although a few do still exist. They're no longer an issue for us really - but we'll admit that we're not massive fans of the visual style that the GTA Trilogy employed compared to the originals, and even with the Classic Lighting, the overall look remains a divisive part of the collection. And of course, Rockstar probably can't do much about the missing songs in the soundtrack.

This is less of a "Review" and more of a "Talking Point" because we've only dabbled with each game since the update arrived last week, but on Xbox Series X it's been a good experience in the 60FPS "Performance" mode with Classic Lighting turned on. The question remains whether it's worth actually buying though, even at the discounted price of £21.99 / $23.99 in the Xbox Black Friday Sale. So, we're going to put the question to you!

If you're playing these games, are they worth it at that price in your opinion? And if not, what's holding you back from a purchase? We'd love to hear from you in the polls and the comments section down below.

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