Netflix Is Removing the GTA Trilogy Mobile Games Next Month
The streaming giant is dropping mobile ports of GTA III and Vice City, but San Andreas gets to stick around.
Rockstar giveth and Rockstar taketh away. The Netflix-exclusive mobile ports of the Grand Theft Auto trilogy will soon be leaving the streaming platform's library. After a successful launch and over 36 million downloads, the curtain is set to fall on these classic open-world adventures.
Just last November, Netflix proudly announced it had secured the exclusive rights to bring the GTA Trilogy - consisting of Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City, and San Andreas - to mobile devices. This was a major coup for the streaming service, as the remastered trilogy had amassed significant attention when it launched on consoles in late 2021 - but not of the positive kind.
The Netflix versions, developed by Video Games Deluxe, were praised for their improvements over the original console releases, including enhanced visuals and quality-of-life features. In fact, many of these enhancements were later ported back to the PC and console versions in a major update just this week.
However, the party is now coming to an end. Notices within the Netflix app and on the respective app store listings indicate that the exclusivity period for the GTA III and Vice City mobile ports is about to expire. Come December 13, these two titles will no longer be available to play through a Netflix subscription.
Interestingly, the fate of the third entry, GTA San Andreas, remains unknown. The departure notices do not include this game, which suggests that Netflix may have negotiated an extension to keep it on the platform beyond the cutoff date.
This news sets a precedent that Netflix's gaming titles may not be permanent fixtures. Much like the rotating catalogs seen on services like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass, it appears Netflix is willing to cycle games in and out of its library as licensing agreements expire.
For now, players have one final month to revisit the streets of Liberty City, Vice City, and San Andreas before the Netflix exclusivity comes to an end. After that, they'll have to (re)turn to console and PC in order to continue their criminal escapades. Thankfully, they'll find the experience to be far better than when they left it at launch.
