The Wildest Pieces of Rockstar Games Merch for Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption

In 2006, Supreme launched its baseball bat collaboration with Louisville Slugger. Five years prior, Rockstar Games placed the Grand Theft Auto 3 logo on the bat of a Louisville Slugger. Throughout the 2010s, Supreme gave us bolt cutters, crowbars, and hammers. In 2001, Rockstar got right to the point and gave the press a slim jim in case they needed a ride even if it didn’t belong to them. 2012 gave us Supreme dominoes, 8 years after GTA already beat them to punch with dominoes with San Andreas branding.

It’s 2026 and Supreme still doesn’t have a table mirror. What hyped brand worth talking about does not have a table mirror? If Supreme and the A24 merch team aren’t careful, Rockstar might finally take their rightful place as the brand that kicked off the modern era of bizarre and unconventional merchandise and promotional items to help bring awareness to their product.

When Rockstar announced that they were releasing their $400 Goodtime State Collector’s Box for Grand Theft Auto 6, fans were in uproar for obvious and fair reasons (the box doesn’t even have a code for the game), but the one that did not faze me was the price. Is a $400 box filled with GTA 6 merch really that much more silly than Supreme looking us straight in the eyes and saying that an Everlast punching bag is worth the nearly $300 upcharge when it first came out just because it has their logo on it? At least you can wear the GTA 6 Oakley glasses and the New Era cap outside to complete your Jason cosplay. Most of the Supreme punching bags that have ever been bought are collecting dust and resale value while the others are backgrounds of Twitch streamers who have never stepped into a ring in their lives.

The Collector’s Box is just the latest example of the legendary video game developer using merchandise to build a deeper connection with their audience. It’s a far cry from the early days of the GTA franchise when Rockstar was truly pushing the limits of good taste, but where people might wonder if there is a point to Supreme slapping their branding on a brick, when Rockstar rolled up an invitation to their launch party in the shape of a brick, there was a purpose. And as time has passed and GTA 6 is shaping up to be the biggest launch in the history of entertainment, their approach has changed, as more eyes than ever will be paying attention, so they want to be clever but not give the non-gamers and the bad-faith actors a chance to spew out some hot takes. Meanwhile, the appreciation for the wild swings Rockstar makes, even with games not tied to GTA, will only continue to grow in both attention and resale value. That is, if you can find these things.

Many thanks to the GTA Series Videos YouTube channel for being an invaluable resource for this article.

Grand Theft Auto III: The Wild West Of Free Stuff

Back in the days when Rockstar Games actually still attended video game conventions like E3, the people in attendance did not “understand” Grand Theft Auto III. The legend goes that the game was in a sorry state for much of its development time, and those who played the build they had at the show were not fully bought into the concept of an open-world game. It was Rockstar’s other game on display, State of Emergency, that generated more buzz thanks to an easier-to-digest concept of arcade-style beat ‘em up gameplay in a more contained space where anarchy rules and hundreds around a hundred NPCs could be on the screen. It was a fun game in short bursts, but definitely nowhere near the revelation that GTA 3 would turn out to be.

To help promote the game, Rockstar sent GTA 3-branded items to the press that would land someone on a banned list today.

• Louisville Slugger baseball bat for magazine editors to keep writers in check during deadline?
• A slim jim for press when they need to open a car, or any car, really.
• Pepper spray because video game reviewers in the early 2000s needed protection from passionate fans who don’t understand why Shenmue got a 6.8.
• Brass knuckles Mysteriously shaped bottle openers so that they could get through customs.
• Stickers and promo T-shirts featuring the in-game brands for trade show attendees

Fans who preordered GTA 3 at certain locations were also treated to some goodies not found anywhere else.

• Lighter for people who bought the game at Virgin Megastore (UK) and Blockbuster (US).
• Playing cards featuring the characters in the game.
• Promotional soundtrack samplers on CD (Vinyl was also sold separately).
• Beanies for various shops in North America, Europe, and Australia.
• Boxer briefs for Blockbuster Italy and other game stores in the region.

For the 10th anniversary of GTA 3 in 2011, Rockstar sent out promotional items to the press along with selling the usual array of swag on their online store.

• A new Louisville Slugger baseball bat with characters from the game etched on the surface was given away to one fan during New York Comic Con 2011, while the other three produced were used as giveaways by various websites
• The brass knuckles mysteriously shaped bottle opener was now the holder of a mug that was sold at Rockstar’s merch store for a limited time

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City: Still On-Brand

While Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was the escalation the series needed to undertake in order to keep the momentum going after GTA 3 changed the industry, the variety of promotional swag sent to developers was toned down significantly compared to a year ago. Not in terms of level of insanity, mind you, but in terms of quantity. It’s possible a one-year time gap between GTA 3 and Vice City kept Rockstar from using their most outlandish ideas for giveaways.

• Members of the press, developers, and attendees of the Vice City launch party were treated to a free table mirror. While a mirror with Vice City branding is innocent enough on its own, Rockstar also gave away razor-shaped keychains with the game’s logo on them to really drive the point home that the two items were to be used in tandem for activities that were allegedly prevalent in the 1980s.
• The invitation for the launch party was wrapped in newsprint and shaped to look like a brick for reasons that are unknown.
• Cidverte, the Italian division of publisher Take-Two Interactive, produced Vice City license plates for people who preordered the game in Italy.
• In one of the earliest instances of in-game skins being used as a preorder incentive, both EB Games and GameStop featured recolored clothing for Tommy Vercetti to wear in the game that was not found in the console versions.
• Neon-colored signage was given to stores throughout the country and as a giveaway for the Vice City Playback contest where fans could send footage to Rockstar featuring their best 30 seconds of gameplay or their best stunt.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas: Mind On The Money…

Maybe it had to do with moving the game’s setting to the West Coast (or Rockstar realizing that their games will sell regardless of whatever promo they do), but the San Andreas merch had a little bit more of a relaxed vibe that focused more on Angelino culture than being a degenerate mobster.

• Select press members were given a collection of San Andreas-branded matches, a lighter, and some rolling papers
• Developers and VIP guests were given a domino set with the San Andreas logo imprinted on the tiles
• Lace dubraes and gold-plated dice valve caps were given away at press events

Handheld Titles: Ebbs and Flows

When GTA went handheld mode for Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories, fans marveled at the technical achievement of porting those large worlds onto the Sony PSP, but also lamented their playability as the lack of a second analog stick and a second set of shoulder buttons made the experience a little more cumbersome. Chinatown Wars on the Nintendo DS went an entirely different direction out of necessity because of the unique dual-screen and stylus setup, and Rockstar highlighted the difference in the merch they handed out to promote the games.

• Press reviewing the game were given stylus shaped like chopsticks and a weed bag (weed not included)
• Unlike the brass knuckles and baseball bats from just a few years prior, Liberty City Stories swag included luggage tags and an umbrella
• A similar theme emerged with Vice City Stories as the only “scandulous” piece of merch from the game were swizzle sticks that were found at the game’s launch party

Grand Theft Auto IV: Return To Form

To celebrate the arrival of the GTA on the next-generation consoles of the PS3 and Xbox 360, Rockstar turned up the dial on their merch game once more as both press and GTA fan sites were treated to unique items that have become desirable collectibles for the superfans of the series. The Hidden Package promotional series included real-world versions of in-game items, some of which might be making their way back to Grand Theft Auto 6.

• Pißwasser beer bottles and beer glasses were given to press and fan sites to promote the game
• Xbox Live held a giveaway for a GTA IV-branded aluminum baseball bat
• Game retailers worldwide gave away GTA IV license plates with the slogan “Worst Place In America” for fans who preordered the game
• GTA IV-branded dartboard was a prize given away on Rockstar’s website when it was previously known as Rockstar Social Club
• Pool cues were given as gifts to press and fan sites covering the game prior to release
• The DLC expansion The Ballad of Gay Tony had a launch party where attendees were given a 14K gold-plated spoon that a person might use to measure tiny quantities of powder or spices
• Perhaps the wildest promo item in GTA IV, a non-working grenade

Grand Theft Auto V: Going Mainstream

The release of GTA V to close out the current generation of consoles also symbolized the changing of Rockstar’s approach to merch. It’s not that they can’t get away with provocative promotional items, but the audience was growing, and with more eyeballs, they have to be a little bit more careful and subtle with their swag. GTA V was more focused on apparel in comparison to previous releases, but they did still have some unique items that could have fit in with the previous decade’s cadre of wild gear.

• A functional 5-iron limited to 1,000 units was sold at the Rockstar online merch store back in 2014
• Also available from that time was a gold-plated USB stick in the shape of a gold bar
• Mexican game retailers gave away a GTA V-branded flask for people who preordered the game
• European retailers had GTA V rings for a preorder incentive, and they appear to be serial numbered. It’s unknown how many were actually made.

Grand Theft Auto VI: An Ongoing Concern

Time will tell just how far Rockstar Games is going to take their merch rollout for GTA 6, but all signs point to bigger and better, without the items that will get them in trouble from mainstream media and overly concerned parents. With all eyes on the city of Miami Beach (which is not the same municipality as the city of Miami) as it is transformed into the fictional world of Vice City, Rockstar has spared no expense getting people ready for what will likely be the biggest launch in the history of video games.

• Nike and Travis Scott are teaming up with GTA 6 for what will likely be one of the biggest sneaker drops of the year
• Rockstar’s online store has the $400 Goodtime State Collector’s Box available for preorder, but they also have plenty of other merch available, including the classic Zippo lighter that’s been a staple of previous merch rollout for past games
• GTA is teaming up with the Miami Heat for a one-night-only event where the team becomes Vice City and the arena sells in-game food items and unique merch

The Best of the Rest

Of course, Rockstar Games is not only known as the house of the Grand Theft Auto series. The two-game Red Dead Redemption series has become as beloved a video game franchise as there is at the moment, with fans eagerly anticipating the next entry. From the early 2000s to the mid-2010s, Rockstar was releasing games that would go on to become cult classics that many hope will either get modern-day reboots or Red Dead and GTA-style new entries. And just like their two biggest franchises, Rockstar was not above daring merch to let people know what was coming soon.

• Max Payne 3 pill box that was sold at the Rockstar Warehouse. Actual in-game painkillers that restore health and slow down time not included.
• Max Payne 3 pen shaped like a bullet that was also sold at the Rockstar Warehouse
• L.A. Noire Bamba Club lighter that was a replica of an in-game item
• Table Tennis-branded ping pong balls given away by Rockstar during San Diego Comic-Con 2006
• Inflatable dodgeball for Bully that was part of the Collector’s Edition of the game and by far the most dangerous item in the game despite what some uninformed parents and politicians would have you believe about the cult classic title
• A Pigsy Statue for the controversial game Manhunt that was sold at the Rockstar Warehouse and used as contest giveaways
• Replica Warriors spray can that hid a T-shirt inside
• Valve caps with Midnight Club branding
• Candles shaped like dynamite to promote the first Red Dead Redemption
• Red Dead Redemption playing cards that were sold at the Rockstar warehouse
• Manhunt voice changer that was a preorder bonus
• A Dixmor Hospital straitjacket given away to developers and people who reviewed the game
• The $99.99 Red Dead Redemption 2 Collector’s Box (without the game), a precursor to the $400 GTA 6 Collector’s Box (without the game)

Juan Martinez

From video game journalism to veteran of the sneaker blog era to podcasting about well, everything, Juan is smiling through it all and can't believe this is his life. His current hot take is that people are really underrating the Psyduck trading card market. Email: juan@soleretriever.com Instagram | Twitter | Bluesky | Threads : @ezyville