What’s most amazing about Grand Theft Auto V is the way that it manages to be both tremendous in scope and precise about detail, creating a massive world that offers an incredible assortment of fun stuff to do yet feels like so much more than just a video game playground. From its ritzy downtown neighborhoods to its inner-city streets, its beachfronts to its poverty-stricken desert towns, the world of GTAV is convincing and alive in ways that video game worlds usually aren’t.

And in such a vibrant world, the opportunities for surprising, wonderful moments never seem to cease. Sometimes those moments are violent and chaotic, a spectacular chain reaction of explosions or a car chase that takes a ludicrous turn. At other times, those moments might be beautiful–the perfect song coming on the radio as you speed down the freeway, or a gorgeous sunset happening as you fly a helicopter over the Vinewood Hills.

Rockstar pushed its signature series forward in GTAV not just with a more amazing world, but with a flexible three-protagonist structure and a number of astounding cinematic missions. As we look forward to the next console generation, Grand Theft Auto V is a wonderful reminder of the amazing things the last generation of consoles was capable of.