This GTA clone is so old its 2002 depiction of London feels nostalgic

Brits are feeling nostalgic for a 20+ year old GTA clone, not so much for the game but its accurate recreation of 2002 era London high streets.

It’s a shame 2002’s The Getaway never took off. While it undoubtedly borrowed more than a few things from Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto series, it was neat having a London-based equivalent that tried to faithfully recreate the captial city.

Over 20 years later, its dedication to authenticity also makes it quite the relic. After all, the London seen in The Getaway is markedly different to the London of today.

As such, it’s become a strange window into the past that’s bound to make anyone who grew up at the turn of millennium feel positively ancient.

Andy Kelly, PR manager at Devolver Digital, drew attention to this recently on X, describing The Getaway as ‘an explorable 3D time capsule of the British high street at the turn of the millennium.’

It’s an apt description, with his screenshots already making us feel old. Thanks to licensing, The Getaway’s London streets are full of shops that while commonplace then have mostly disappeared now.

Topshop, for instance, went into administration in 2020, shutting all 500+ UK stores, and while it did find a new owner, it’s a purely online retailer nowadays. We also can’t remember the last time we saw an Orange Shop in public, and a quick Google search brings up entirely unrelated stores.

The Getaway’s London isn’t completely unrecognisable, though. Odeon is still around, but the cinema seen in-game looks distinctly 2000s compared to its current appearance.

We also got a kick out of all the old in-game advertising. The poster for the Mamma Mia stage musical on the side of a bus somehow feels era appropriate, despite the fact the show’s still running to this day.

Plus, as Kelly points out, The Getaway technically features the only video game appearance of actor Michael Ball, who can be seen on a poster outside The Dominion Theatre.

With how much The Getaway licensed in order to recreate London (including all the vehicles you could drive), it’ll likely never see a remaster or re-release of any kind.

Renegotiating all these licenses would probably be too much of a hassle and some would have to be replaced with generic made-up brands.

In fact, Sony were forced to remove BT vans from the game, after they complained about them being used in violent gameplay scenes.

What is The Getaway?

Developed by British studio Team Soho and published by Sony for the PlayStation 2, The Getaway was essentially a GTA clone set in London, that had you play two separate storylines: one as an ex-convict and one as a police officer.

It was undeniably ambitious and did well enough to warrant a sequel in 2004, and then a PlayStation Portable spin-off, Gangs Of London, in 2006. There were plans for another game, but they wound up being cancelled.

Strangely, the Gangs Of London spin-off went on to serve as the basis for the 2020 Gangs Of London TV show on Sky. It’s on track for a third season, but it certainly hasn’t revitalised The Getaway brand. We imagine most fans of the show aren’t even aware it’s based on a video game.

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