GTA 5 has been out for exactly a year, and its only getting better

GTA 5 launched on Xbox 360 and PS3 exactly a year ago today. On one hand, it doesn't seem like five minutes ago that it made its debut, and as such this anniversary gives us the fear that time is getting away from us, that we'll all be old soon, that life is short and hope is futile. On the other, the intervening year has provided evidence, if any was needed, that in terms of world-building and atmosphere, Rockstar is still years beyond its competitors.

The new generation – and its open world flag-bearers such as Infamous: Second Sun and Watch Dogs – haven't dulled appreciation for Los Santos: if anything, they've heightened it. Neither of those titles could match Rockstar's version of LA for variety, depth, or sheer – and this is the technical term – dickaboutability. And while it's true to say that Rockstar had the benefit of having had years to work at the hardware (and other GTA instalments to work from), there's an ambition at play in GTA 5 that there just isn't in its contemporaries, new gen or not.

It was an astonishing technical achievement at the time, and after a year of upgraded hardware – and all the new bells and whistles it brings – you might be forgiven for thinking it would look rough in comparison. In fairness, in some ways it does. But in the ways that matter – the geography, the geometry, basically anything unrelated to iconic hat textures and fluttering coats – its stands as phenomenal mix of technical and artistic skill.

With PS4 and Xbox One versions announced for later this year, there's every chance that the best open world of last-gen is going to be the best of this one, for now at least. Until then, however, get back in the GTA mood with this load of old nonsense we threw together when it came out.