Rockstar Games released the original Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto 2 as registered free downloads several years ago. The game has since been removed from the Rockstar Classics page, and both Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto 2 are no longer available on the Rockstar Games websites.

However, third-party websites host the games and offer these games as free downloads for Windows computer users. These sites include AllGamesAtoZ, BestOld Games, and CNET.

The original Grand Theft Auto game was released in 1997 by a small studio called DMA Design, which would later become Rockstar Games. The development company and the Grand Theft Auto series of games expanded rapidly in the years that followed, with the release of over a dozen Grand Theft Auto titles across various platforms, along with other award-winning and best-selling games such as Max Payne and L.A. Noire. When it was released, the original Grand Theft Auto was a groundbreaking game, depicting urban crime within a non-linear sandbox-style game world.

The game is set in the fictional cities of Liberty City, Vice City, and San Andreas, which are based on the American cities of New York, Miami, and Los Angeles, respectively. Players are free to explore the environments at their own pace and are not bound by a linear storyline. The game features an overarching mission-based storyline that can be completed at the player's own pace. The game features eight characters to choose from, but the choice of character does not affect gameplay.