San Andreas is a fictional state in the Grand Theft Auto series. It is best known as the setting of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and as the state containing Los Santos in Grand Theft Auto V.
The name is borrowed from real Californian geography, but the game setting is fictional. It should not be confused with the real San Andreas Fault or with any real government area.
In Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
In Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, the state includes three main cities:
- Los Santos, based mainly on Los Angeles;
- San Fierro, based mainly on San Francisco;
- Las Venturas, based mainly on Las Vegas.
The game also includes countryside, desert, small towns, mountains, forests, airports and coastlines. This made the 2004 version of San Andreas larger and more varied than the city maps of Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
Story Setting
The 2004 game follows Carl "CJ" Johnson after he returns to Los Santos. The story uses fictional gangs, corrupt police, family conflict, crime and the politics of early 1990s urban life as its main material.
The setting is not a realistic map of California or Nevada. It is a compressed satirical version of western American places, built for driving, missions and open-world play.
Later Use
Grand Theft Auto V returns to San Andreas, but focuses mainly on Los Santos and Blaine County rather than recreating the full three-city map from the 2004 game.
Rockstar later included Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas in Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition, alongside Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
Reception and Legacy
San Andreas remains one of the most recognisable settings in the series because it combines urban crime fiction with a wider state map. Its cities, radio stations, vehicle culture and characters became a major part of the series' public identity.
The setting is also important because it shows how the series uses parody. Los Santos, San Fierro and Las Venturas are not direct copies of real cities, but exaggerated game versions shaped around mission design and satire.
See Also
References
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