10 mods to make GTA Trilogy a smoother experience

tommy vercetti in gta vice city definitive edition
(Image credit: Rockstar Games)

Looking for the best GTA Trilogy mods? The Definitive Edition is now back on PC after a shaky launch, and you might be wondering what you can do to smooth out the rougher edges of the remasters in their current state.

Of course, messing with game files has the potential to break stuff, and using mods comes with its own risk. With that said, most of these mods simply require you to drop a file into a folder inside the game installation. Still, it's worth checking the documentation for each before you start. If you've used GTA 5 mods in the past, this should be a breeze.

If you're just after a bit of fun, we have cheat guides for GTA 3, Vice City, and San Andreas. But if you want an experience that feels more like the original games, this guide has you covered. Here are the best GTA Trilogy mods to help you get that authentic experience. 

The best GTA Trilogy mods 

All

Better Rain
The name says it all. This mod corrects the vision-obscuring white lines that pass as rain in the Definitive Edition. It works with all three games, too.

The Uncompressed Sounds of Grand Theft Auto
While the name is a bit of a mouthful, this mod replaces default sounds with uncompressed, higher-quality audio.

Simple Reticle 
If you don't like the size and look of the aiming reticule, this mod changes it to a dot.

San Andreas

Make Los Santos Great Again
This mod attempts to mimic the feel of the original games by adding fog and changing up the colour palettes to give it a more authentic feel.

All Radio Songs Restored
This mod restores every song that was cut from the remastered San Andreas, so you can enjoy all the tunes of the original.

GTA SA - CJ Face Retexture 4K
As the name implies, this mod improves CJ's appearance and replaces all faces and hairstyles with new 4K textures.

(Image credit: Rockstar Games)

Vice City

Tommy Vercetti
As with the mod above, this one attempts to improve Tommy Vercetti's appearance and makes him more recognisable.

Original Menu Sounds
If you want the original menu sounds instead of the default San Andreas ones, this mod fixes that.

GTA 3

Better Menu Sounds 
This mod changes the menu selection and click sounds rather than using the default San Andreas sounds.

GTA III Style Claude 
This mod is a retexture of Claude, so he looks more like he did in the original game.

Image

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Sarah James
Guides Writer

Sarah started as a freelance writer in 2018, writing for PCGamesN, TechRadar, GamingBible, Red Bull Gaming and more. In 2021, she was offered a full-time position on the PC Gamer team where she takes every possible opportunity to talk about World of Warcraft and Elden Ring. When not writing guides, most of her spare time is spent in Azeroth—though she's quite partial to JRPGs too. One of her fondest hopes is to one day play through the ending of Final Fantasy X without breaking down into a sobbing heap. She probably has more wolves in Valheim than you.