13 Hardest Missions in GTA: San Andreas

GTA: San Andreas, despite being considered by many as the best game in the franchise, was nonetheless the cause of untold frustration.

There’s definitely something about the open world game format that is conducive to really challenging missions. Maybe the developers are sadists, or maybe it’s largely too tough to master vehicle mechanics.

Whatever the case, we’re going to jump into this list of the top 13 hardest missions you’ll ever face when playing San Andreas. If you’re a veteran of this series you can probably guess a few in this list already.

13. Monster

Driving is the name of the game in Grand Theft Auto.

Whether it’s on a peddle bike or a helicopter, getting around the world is rewarding yet often frustrating.

This first mission on the list, Monster, is definitely no exception.

Race missions are either really easy or really difficult, and this one falls into the latter category.

While driving a monster truck has its perks, you’ll more than likely be beaten to the post many a time by faster vehicles. Keep your cool and keep at it, you’ll clear this eventually.

12. Cop Wheels

If there’s one thing that has the potential to make a driving mission in GTA even more frustrating, it’s adding a timer.

The bane of every gamer’s existence, timed missions crank up the tension and make the most ordinary objectives that much more infuriatingly difficult.

Cop Wheels involves stealing not one, not two, but four police bikes.

Now this wouldn’t be so difficult if they were stationary. But unfortunately you’ll have to chase them down first before driving them back to a getaway vehicle. Oh and did I mention it’s timed?

This mission definitely has the potential for rage quitting.

11. N.O.E.

This next mission involves – you guessed it – more vehicle fun.

This time in N.O.E. you’ll be required to fly a plane as a 10 minute timer is ticking away in the foreground.

On top of this, there’s an added element of difficulty with the visibility bar. As it’s a covert operation you’ll have to ensure you’re not seen. This is pretty difficult to do when you’re constantly nose-diving and tail-spinning against your will.

10. Stowaway

Much like a scene from a blockbuster movie, the beginning of Stowaway will have you dodging gunfire while speeding towards the ramp of a plane about to takeoff as they drop barrels in your path.

Yeah it’s pretty wild.

If you can navigate your way past this opening section, which will really test your motorbike driving and patience, the rest of the mission is fairly straightforward.

Kill a few government agents on the plane in hand-to-hand combat before parachuting out in a very James Bond style.

9. Farewell, My Love…

In what is probably the most arbitrary way to start a race, Carl’s ex Catalina challenges him to race to prove… he is passionate?

Whatever the case, there’s another race in the cards in ‘Farewell, my love…’ and this is definitely one that’ll have you reconsidering how much you want to play the GTA franchise.

An extremely long and treacherous course lays in store in this mission.

One missed jump or wrong turn and that could cost you the race. Do this enough times and it’ll cost a few weeks off your life.

8. A Home in the Hills

Another James Bond blockbuster style opening to a mission, you’ll be jumping out of a plane to parachute down towards your friend Madd Dogg’s occupied mansion in the hills.

Once you land on the roof, all you’ll have to do is take out hundreds of generic goons who’ve taken over the place. Not the easiest task in the world, it has to be said.

While this mission is a welcome reprieve from driving missions, it relies heavily on the other difficult aspect of the game: the shooting.

Once you’ve fought your way tooth and nail through the mansion you get to do some more driving as you chase down Big Poppa.

7. Supply Lines

Nobody likes a bully. That’s what makes this mission satisfying: seeking out revenge for the harmless victim Zero’s humiliation.

However, the more you get into this mission the more you’ll start to feel that you’re the real victim here.

Forget everything you know about tough flying missions because this one changes the game completely – for the worse.

Without a doubt the cause of countless broken controllers, Supply Lines is one of those you’ll always remember. Flying a toy plane around the city causing chaos should be a great time but only if you can beat this on the first try.

It’s a mission that’ll leave the words ‘Launch the red baron’ etched into your mind forever.

6. Robbing Uncle Sam

One of the most frustrating ways to lose a mission is because of the liability of an AI character that stands around as you do all the work.

Robbing Uncle Sam is that very mission.

Heading over to the docks you first have to deal with a lot of military soldiers. No easy feat.

This is before you go and load up the back of your van with crates in a warehouse while taking fire.

It sounds simple enough, but the problem lies in your partner in crime Ryder.

While you’re happily going about your business loading up crates, Ryder is liable to be ambushed and shot down by oncoming waves of soldiers.

So you essentially have to babysit him in between loading crates which makes for an infuriating experience as you can lose the mission through no fault of your own.

5. Learning To Fly

Learning to fly should be a joyful experience. Getting to grips with the game’s flying and base jumping mechanics should be easy, right?

Well this obligatory tutorial-style mission will have you wanting to be the one base jumping out of your own window.

With an incredibly frustrating series of maneuvers you have to pull off with different vehicles, this mission seems unnecessarily frustrating and since there’s no chaos, killing, or drama involved it is very much a dud.

The first is the classic flying mission: fly through hoops in your plane and land.

This all sounds great in theory the problem is nine times out of ten you’ll find yourself dive-bombing the runway and exploding in a spectacular fashion.

What’s more you’ll have to do these missions over and over again with the janky controls before you can continue with the story. If there’s any better way to crush enthusiasm for a game I’d like to know. And seriously there’s a lot of discussion about this one.

4. OG Loc

This is a chase and kill a target kind of mission so it should be super fun, or so you’d think.

OG Loc is about helping your old friend, who just got out of prison, commit murder. The hard part about this mission is, other than figuring out why OG Loc is so keen to kill immediately after leaving prison, is chasing Jeffrey down in a motorbike pursuit.

Made difficult by all the narrow streets, vehicles popping up as you’re rapidly approaching, and the gunfire being exchanged between your passenger and the target. This mission is definitely no walk in the park.

The ultimate challenge of your motorbike riding skills comes into view as you’ll have to focus on the target while weaving in and out of traffic at high speeds and trying not to get shot too much. Your whip can catch fire and explode y’know.

Don’t be surprised if as you’re driving you hit a car and go flying over the handlebars. This mission will have you wishing you left OG Loc to take care of his business on his own.

3. Freefall

Here is one of those missions that should be condemned to video game hell.

Freefall is the kind of mission that’ll have you pulling your hair out trying to solve it. Well, we have the Internet to help but it’s still tough.

As discovered in this list, the more difficult ones tend to involve driving and the most difficult ones tend to involve flying.

Freefall has you steal the slowest plane in existence to chase down a much faster plane – because dealing with the terrible flying mechanics wasn’t enough torture apparently.

This is kinda like the flying tutorial mission but with real-life objectives. So yeah have fun with this one. Or actually you know what, just cheat to beat the thing I won’t tell.

2. Wrong Side of the Tracks

In a mission that has you and Big Poppa taking on the world, Vagos gang members more specifically… Wrong Side of the Tracks is probably not one you’ll get through on the first try.

Proving to be one of the worst shots out there, Big Poppa is more useless than any stormtrooper.

Spraying bullets unconvincingly in the direction of the Vagos gang members on top of the train is just one annoying piece. But by artificially making the mission more difficult in having you rely on the AI character while you try your best to stay close to the train carriage on a motorbike, the game developers really make this just the worst kind of GTA mission.

Beat it and move on as fast as you can.

1. End of the Line

Arguably how it should be, the last mission of the game – aptly called ‘end of the line’ – could very well prove to be the end of your patience too.

A multi-staged mission, this will have you driving SWAT tanks, storming buildings, and killing seemingly endless swathes of virtual goons or police or whatever.

The difficulty of this is due in part to its extremely long duration(most tutorials run 15-30 minutes for this). But also due to the part where you have to rescue Smoke with, you guessed it, a tight time limit.

It’s definitely harder to enjoy the end of the game when you keep dying over and over again in a valiant effort to get over the line.

But then again, maybe that’s how a game with so many frustrating missions should end. Cause once you’re done you get to enjoy the credits knowing you put up one hell of a fight.