Choose Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Choose Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas if it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 89.1% positive across 22,358 reviews.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas vs Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition both land in Action, Adventure on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Action, Adventure on Steam. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2008) is 12 years older than Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition (2020). Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas scores higher on Steam reviews (89.1% positive) than Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition (81.4% positive). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Which should you pick?
Choose Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition
Choose Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition if you want the Multi-player side of the pairing. On Steam, it's the newer release (2020) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 69,451 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition sit in Action and Adventure on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Use the side-by-side table for the feature view, or follow the "Games like" links below to see ranked alternatives for either title.
Side-by-side comparison
 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas |  Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2008 | 2020 |
| Genres | Action, Adventure | Action, Adventure |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | Price unknown | 19.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 89.1% positive (22,358 reviews) | 81.4% positive (69,451 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Multi-player |
| Developers | Rockstar Games | Rockstar North, Rockstar Toronto |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Adventure on Steam.
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2008) is 12 years older than Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition (2020).
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas scores higher on Steam reviews (89.1% positive) than Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition (81.4% positive).
- Both are Deck Playable.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas vs Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition — FAQ
- Which is better, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas or Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition?
- On Steam reviews Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas scores higher (89.1% positive) than Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition (81.4% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas or Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition first?
- If you want chronology, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2008) came out before Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition (2020). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition similar?
- They overlap on Action, Adventure on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.
- Does Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas have multiplayer like Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition?
- No. Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition supports multiplayer on Steam (Multi-player), while Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is listed as single-player only.