What's to Do?
As always, there are a series of missions dedicated to forwarding the expanisve story of San Andreas--the story of you, Carl Johnson. After being away from the hood for five years after the death of your family members, you've returned. The problems that plagued you are still there... and have gotten worse. It's up to you to set things right, gain respect, and deliver the hood from evil.

The story missions can be found in the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Walkthrough section of this guide. They are listed under the city (or countryside) they take place in and the person who doles them out. Sometimes, mission-givers disappear for awhile, and reappear when the story moves along. Pay attention where you get the mission, and try to note its name to easily find the section of walkthrough you're looking for.

Not all missions are needed to complete the story, and we've indicated (when possible) which are needed to forward the narrative. However, all missions available in a specific city, whether crucial or not, can be found listed under the person who gives them.

As you progress through the game, you'll drive and steal countless numbers of vehicles. Check out how they stack up and get driving tips in the Vehicles section of this guide. As you become more of a big-shot and start earning money, you'll want to purchase some real estate in various places around the map. This will give you more home bases and save locations. Check out the Buildings/Stores section of this guide for the low-down on property... and other stuff to buy.

You'll notice that when you get in certain vehicles, you will be able to push a button and trigger special missions. Visit the Vehicle Missions section of this guide to get the scoop on these.

In addition to missions, there is tons of stuff to find, scattered throughout the three cities and the countryside. For starters, there are 100 gang signs that you'll need to tag over. We list the locations of those in the Tags section of this guide. There are also 50 Snapshots to take, 70 Unique Jumps to make, 50 Oysters to find, and 50 Horseshoes to locate. Click on the links to see a list of each.

We've documented all of the other new stuff you can accomplish in the sections below. Read on!

What's in a Name?
It's called Grand Theft Auto for a reason... and that's because your main means of transport is to jack someone else's car and take it on a joyride of your own. In order to jack a car, you simply need to make it stop (most motorists will stop if you stand in front of the car, unless they are going too fast to stop), then press the hi-jack button while near the car in order to assume ownership by force. For more information on the kinds of rides you can steal, visit the Vehicles section of this guide.

Once you jack a car, get out of the area quickly. People don't like getting their cars stolen, and some will come after you and try to take back what's theirs. Some of them will use a shovel to do this. You'll also want to avoid jacking a car when a cop is around. If a police officer sees you steal one, your wanted level will automatically go to one star, and the po-po will be on your tail. Which leads us to...

Wanted Level
What's a wanted level? It's a tangible representation of just how much trouble you're in as a criminal at the given moment. Here are things you can do to raise your wanted level:

• Jacking cars: Sure, it's the bread and butter of the game, but if a cop sees you do it, he will come after you.
• Running pedestrians over: As in life, this will draw attention, especially from the boys in blue.
• Shooting people: Pretty obvious. Shoot all you want when the cops aren't around, but when Johnny Law is in sight, lay off the trigger. If you shoot a cop, then you're in a world of hurt.
• Damaging property: This one is tricky. Cops won't nail you if are knocking down light poles, but they might take notice if you're wrecking cars left and right... especially cop cars.

The more things you do, the worse it will get. Your Wanted Level is represented by stars. If you have one star, it's pretty easy to maneuver out of danger. If you have over one star, the police will chase you more fiercely. Cars will chase you, and get more aggressive. Anything above that is big trouble. SWAT members will be called in, roadblocks formed, etc. If you want to have some fun, see how high you can get your warning level and then see how long you can stay alive/evade the police.

If the cops do catch you, they'll bust you... provided they don't run you over or shoot you first. You'll wake up after spending a night in prison. Your wallet will be a lot lighter and you'll be stripped of any weapons you may have accrued, so be extra careful when messing with 5-0. There's nothing more depressing than losing a nice Shotgun just because some bitch-ass cop decided to collar you.

Getting Out of Trouble
If your wanted level is a mere one star, all you have to do is stay out of the policeman's eyesight for a bit, and the wanted level will go away. Pursuit in motor vehicles is weak at best... so just find a quiet neighborhood to drive around in, or run to a secluded spot and just wait it out.

If the wanted level is higher, you'll be needing to get your ass to a Pay N' Spray (indicated by a green spray can icon on the map). It will cost $100 a pop, which is hardly anything when you consider you'll stay out of jail for a night. After you get your car sprayed, you have to be nice for awhile. While your stars are flashing, you'll have to stay completely out of trouble, or your warning level will immediately vault back up to its orginal glory.

Another way to whittle away at your wanted level is to find Bribe icons and walk (or drive) over them. Doing this will lower your wanted level by one star, which could be the difference between freedom and the slammer. A bribe icon is shown on the picture above. The final way to drop a wanted level is to finish a mission. Even if you're at six stars, the second you finish, the threat will go away. 

Driving Tips

• It's more important to drive under control than it is to drive fast. You'll avoid getting spun around and banged up, which becomes very crucial in certain missions.
• When you're going fast, avoid sudden movements. These will cause your car to spin out, flip, roll, etc.
• If your car is banged up and smoking, get another one. If the mission requires you to stay in the same car... hurry up and get it to a Pay N' Spray! If a car starts flaming, get out fast, then run... it's about to blow. You won't survive if you're anywhere in the explosion halo.
• Use the lock-on button on turns. It's there for a reason. You'll be able to keep some of your speed by sliding through a turn, rather than braking sharply and then turning.
• Know the limitations of your vehicle. Don't take a slow or beat-up car to a street race, for instance, and don't take a wimpy compact to a job where you know you're going to get shot at.
• Be alert. This sounds stupid, but it isn't. There is so much going on in the city that it is sometimes difficult to see where everything is coming from. Focus on driving when you're driving and you'll avoid a lot of heartache.

Mixin' It Up
In addition to driving around and causing a ruckus, another major element in GTA is combat. This game improves on everything from Vice City. The targeting is much better, and combat just feels a lot more fluid.  

Whether hand-to-hand or with weapons, the concept is pretty much the same. Lock on to your target, then punch or shoot. If you're shooting a weapon, you can cycle through targets as you continue to hold the lock. In this way, you can quickly move through targets and mow down a series of enemies in a hurry.

You can also target manually. Hold down the lock-on button and use the Right Analog Stick to move the manual aiming cursor around. By doing this, you can pinpoint body parts, or shoot at specific parts of a vehicle (like the gas tank). When holding down the lock-on, you can also strafe by moving the left analog stick left and right. Use this to stay on the move and dodge bullets as you dish some of your own.

Combat Tips:

• Always crouch when firing weapons. This improves your accuracy and decreases the enemy's chances of hitting you.
• Speaking to a similar point, always fire from a position of cover. Crouch down next to a low wall or car and use it to protect yourself as you shoot at the opposition.
• Use the right weapon for the job. Don't bring a shotgun to the party when you need to blast across the room. A Tec-9 is a pretty good all-around bet.
• Roll to avoid fire. Whenever crouched, pressing right or left on the left analog will make you roll, and this can be used to dodge bullets.
• Use the manual camera to look around corners and down hallways before going willy-nilly into the fray. Doing this kind of cheaty recon will allow you to stay alive longer.
• Use your mini-map to discover where potential targets may be coming from. Enemies can approach from any direction, so keep your head on a swivel, and don't be surprised!
• Don't reload in the open. Always seek cover to put in a new clip.
• When you can, roll with numbers. Bringing buddies along to a fight will make it much easier.
• If you can, kill people with your car before you get out and use a gun.
• Always wear a vest. This will essentially give you two health bars to work with, and make you a much bigger asset in any firefight.

Skeelz to Make the Dealz
In San Andreas, your character possesses some RPG-esque attributes which can be grown throughout the course of the game to make certain things easier. While playing, you can quickly pull up a status display to see how you're progressing in those categories. Most of the skills are improved by simple repetition. It stands to reason that the more you shoot weapons, the higher your Weapons Skill rises. Here are the attributes you can affect and how to do so:

Respect: Isn't respect what we're all after? Your character is no different. Respect will be earned by killing rival gang members and completing missions. You can also gain some measure of respect by dressing appropriately and taking care of yourself.

Weapon Skill: This skill measures how proficient you are with weapons. As you use specific weapons  more, your skill will grow accordingly. You can check out the progress you've made with a specific weapon by looking at the Stats: Weapons scroll. You'll begin at Poor with each gun, and progress from Gangster to Hitman. As your skills improve, you'll gain the ability to hold multiple weapons and more. The Weapon Skill you see on the display is your cumulative attribute.

Stamina: The more Stamina you have, the longer you will be able to sprint and hold your breath while swimming. To improve this skill, get on the treadmill or stationary bike in a Gym, run around the environment and scale a lot of hills. In addition to increasing Stamina, you will increase your Max Health, which is very helpful. Every chance you get early on, get some reps in on the bike.

Muscle: The more muscle you put on, the stronger you'll be in hand-to-hand combat, and the more attractive you'll be. You can get seriously yolked by spending some time in the Gym.  Go to the Dumbells and Bench to put on lots of muscle mass quickly.

Fat: Having more Fat will slow you down, and hurt your Stamina. To get Fat, go to a restaurant and pig out on fatty foods. To burn it, do activities that promote Stamina--like running, swimming and riding the stationary bike. Or just don't eat.