There is something definitely very appealing about being able to break every law and wreak havoc on the society in a safe, virtual world. The sales numbers of the Grand Theft Auto franchise have always been a testimony to this fact. And no version of the game testifies it more clearly than the latest one.

The long awaited Grand Theft Auto V finally hit the stores a few days ago, and in the first three days it passed the $1 Billion USD mark. In the first day alone it sold close to 14 million copies worth $800 million USD; Crazy numbers for a crazy game. One aspect of the new game which we care about, and is also one of its biggest attraction, is the new driving system with better handling and much nicer cars. But being able to shoot at everybody and everything you fancy is still the biggest selling point of the GTA.

GTA 5 smashed the record of Call of Duty Black Ops II, which earned its first billion after 15 days. On the first day COD managed a measly $500 million. GTA’s record is also a head and shoulders above anything the highest grossing films of all time have managed. The Avatar is said to pass the billion mark after a whopping 17 days.

“Grand Theft Auto is a cultural phenomenon and Rockstar Games continues to redefine what can be achieved in interactive entertainment. We are incredibly proud of the extraordinary critical and commercial response to Grand Theft Auto V.” – Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO of Take-Two

With a billion dollar in the bag you would think, would you not, that Rockstars and Take-Two, the makers of GTA, wouldn’t mind a couple of illegal downloads in South East Asia or wherever. But they are going after the pirates and there have been cases of Microsoft ban on Xbox Live units as a result.