Grand Theft Auto: London, 1969
Encyclopedia
The Grand Theft Auto: Mission Packs are expansion pack
s for the original Grand Theft Auto
. Two were released separately in 1999; both require the original Grand Theft Auto game to run, and are set in London
during the 1960s.
, Microsoft Windows
. In April 1999, a version for Sony
's PlayStation was released. The game uses the same game engine
as Grand Theft Auto, thus giving the game graphics and gameplay similar to Grand Theft Auto. Like Grand Theft Auto, the mission pack is divided into sub-sections with short cut scenes between. London, 1969 was the first expansion pack released for PlayStation.
The player names their character (Default is 'Sid Vacant', a parody of Sid Vicious
and the Sex Pistols
song Pretty Vacant
) and chooses a picture to represent them. The picture is only seen upon completion/failure of a mission and doesn't affect the appearance or personality in any way. The player must work for 'The Crisp Twins', another parody, this time of 'The Kray Twins'.
The expansion introduces 30 new vehicles, 32 new missions, and instead of fictional locations based on real-life cities, as in Grand Theft Auto (Liberty City
, San Andreas, and Vice City
), the game takes place in London
in 1969. The player again plays the role of a criminal involved in organized crime.
The temporal setting has been exploited through cultural and historical references, including the appearance of a James Bond
-like character and use of stereotypical Cockney
slang
. In-game dialogue includes such lines as "Oi!, stop right there!", "You're nicked!" (under arrest) and "You're brown bread!" (i.e. You're dead).
Similar to the bonuses in Grand Theft Auto
and Grand Theft Auto 2
, the player receives a large cash reward for running over a group of hippies
with a car without braking. Successfully performing the trick displays the message "KEEP LONDON TIDY!" and awards a cash bonus.
, to Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto: London, 1969. It is the third game in the series.
Like London, 1969, it uses the same game engine
as Grand Theft Auto. As the name implies, the game takes place in London
in the year 1961, eight years before the events that took place in London, 1969. The 1961 setting makes this mission pack the earliest Grand Theft Auto game chronologically.
Unlike London, 1969, London, 1961 is only available for PC
, as it is downloadable freeware
. At 7 MB
, London, 1961 requires London, 1969, which, in turn, requires Grand Theft Auto. It can also only be played with the original London, 1969 disc; it does not work with the version included in the Grand Theft Auto: The Classics Collection pack.
Expansion pack
An expansion pack, expansion set, or supplement is an addition to an existing role-playing game, tabletop game or video game. These add-ons usually add new game areas, weapons, objects, and/or an extended storyline to a complete and already released game...
s for the original Grand Theft Auto
Grand Theft Auto (video game)
Grand Theft Auto is a 1997 action-adventure video game created by British games developer DMA Design and published by BMG Interactive. The game allows the player to take on the role of a criminal who can roam freely around a big city. Various missions are set for completion, such as bank...
. Two were released separately in 1999; both require the original Grand Theft Auto game to run, and are set in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
during the 1960s.
Grand Theft Auto: London, 1969
Grand Theft Auto: Mission Pack #1 - London, 1969 is a mission pack for Grand Theft Auto, and the second game in the series. London, 1969 was released on 31 March 1999 for DOSDOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. In April 1999, a version for Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
's PlayStation was released. The game uses the same game engine
Game engine
A game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games. There are many game engines that are designed to work on video game consoles and personal computers...
as Grand Theft Auto, thus giving the game graphics and gameplay similar to Grand Theft Auto. Like Grand Theft Auto, the mission pack is divided into sub-sections with short cut scenes between. London, 1969 was the first expansion pack released for PlayStation.
The player names their character (Default is 'Sid Vacant', a parody of Sid Vicious
Sid Vicious
Sid Vicious was an English musician best known as the bassist of the influential punk rock group Sex Pistols...
and the Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
song Pretty Vacant
Pretty Vacant
"Pretty Vacant" is a song by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was released on 1 July 1977 as the third single from their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The song marked the band's only appearance on the British music show Top of the Pops...
) and chooses a picture to represent them. The picture is only seen upon completion/failure of a mission and doesn't affect the appearance or personality in any way. The player must work for 'The Crisp Twins', another parody, this time of 'The Kray Twins'.
The expansion introduces 30 new vehicles, 32 new missions, and instead of fictional locations based on real-life cities, as in Grand Theft Auto (Liberty City
Liberty City (Grand Theft Auto)
Liberty City is a fictional city in Rockstar Games' video games series Grand Theft Auto, based primarily on several major cities including New York City...
, San Andreas, and Vice City
Vice City
Vice City is a fictional city in the Grand Theft Auto series, based on Miami, Florida. Two versions of the city have appeared in different generations of the series: The Grand Theft Auto rendition is geographically very similar to Miami...
), the game takes place in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1969. The player again plays the role of a criminal involved in organized crime.
The temporal setting has been exploited through cultural and historical references, including the appearance of a James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
-like character and use of stereotypical Cockney
Cockney
The term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations. Geographically and culturally, it often refers to working class Londoners, particularly those in the East End...
slang
Slang
Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found in areas of the lexicon that refer to things considered taboo...
. In-game dialogue includes such lines as "Oi!, stop right there!", "You're nicked!" (under arrest) and "You're brown bread!" (i.e. You're dead).
Similar to the bonuses in Grand Theft Auto
Grand Theft Auto (video game)
Grand Theft Auto is a 1997 action-adventure video game created by British games developer DMA Design and published by BMG Interactive. The game allows the player to take on the role of a criminal who can roam freely around a big city. Various missions are set for completion, such as bank...
and Grand Theft Auto 2
Grand Theft Auto 2
Grand Theft Auto 2 is a video game that was released worldwide on October 25, 1999, by developer DMA Design , initially for the Windows operating system and the PlayStation console. The game was later ported to the Dreamcast console and the Game Boy Color. It is the sequel to 1997 hit Grand Theft...
, the player receives a large cash reward for running over a group of hippies
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
with a car without braking. Successfully performing the trick displays the message "KEEP LONDON TIDY!" and awards a cash bonus.
Grand Theft Auto: London, 1961
Released on 1 June 1999, Grand Theft Auto: Mission Pack #2 - London, 1961 is a freely distributed mission pack, or expansion packExpansion pack
An expansion pack, expansion set, or supplement is an addition to an existing role-playing game, tabletop game or video game. These add-ons usually add new game areas, weapons, objects, and/or an extended storyline to a complete and already released game...
, to Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto: London, 1969. It is the third game in the series.
Like London, 1969, it uses the same game engine
Game engine
A game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games. There are many game engines that are designed to work on video game consoles and personal computers...
as Grand Theft Auto. As the name implies, the game takes place in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in the year 1961, eight years before the events that took place in London, 1969. The 1961 setting makes this mission pack the earliest Grand Theft Auto game chronologically.
Unlike London, 1969, London, 1961 is only available for PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
, as it is downloadable freeware
Freeware
Freeware is computer software that is available for use at no cost or for an optional fee, but usually with one or more restricted usage rights. Freeware is in contrast to commercial software, which is typically sold for profit, but might be distributed for a business or commercial purpose in the...
. At 7 MB
Megabyte
The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
, London, 1961 requires London, 1969, which, in turn, requires Grand Theft Auto. It can also only be played with the original London, 1969 disc; it does not work with the version included in the Grand Theft Auto: The Classics Collection pack.
Origin of GTA Mission Packs
Several independent authors developed 3rd party software tools which allowed the original PC GTA game to be modified by users and fans. One such tool was GTACars. These tools helped spark a user community which in turn created a large number of unique vehicles and levels of their own. Other tools included M1 and Junction 25 for the editing tiles and maps. The mission packs were created by DMA Designs using several of these tools licensed for commercial use.External links
- Official website
- Grand Theft Auto: London 1969 at Grand Theft Wiki
- Grand Theft Auto: London 1961 at Grand Theft Wiki