An underappreciated proto-GTA dreamed up by DMA Design. You roam five historical eras in vehicles, beating back an alien invasion across a vast sandbox. The ambition is huge and the vehicle-hopping thrilling, but cryptic objectives and rough edges hold things back.
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Category
Action Adventure1 player12+
Description
Semi-open-world action game where Adam Drake battles alien harvesters across five historical eras, from ancient Greece to the future. Developed by DMA Design, published by Gremlin Interactive, released in 1998. Five playable eras, a variety of pilotable vehicles, and wide exploration.
October 1998 North American edition published by Midway, which marks DMA Design's first major piece before the studio became Rockstar North and went on to drive the Grand Theft Auto franchise. The US cartridge includes a printed manual carrying a fictional historical dossier on the alien invasion, a document often missing from resales. For enthusiasts tracking the Rockstar lineage, it is the key link between Lemmings and GTA III.
An underrated gem
Long before founding GTA, DMA Design was experimenting here with the semi-open world in an alien hunt spanning five eras at the wheel of anything that moves. With a troubled development and shaky tech, it left critics puzzled. But its pioneering ambition and freedom of action make it a curiosity that explorers will savour.
Is Body Harvest still worth playing in 2026?
An overlooked GTA forerunner from DMA Design, Body Harvest offers a genuine sandbox where you travel five eras in vehicles to push back an alien invasion. The ambition is huge, and the idea of freely swapping between car, tank, helicopter and other machines feels exhilarating for 1998. The tech has aged, missions are occasionally cryptic and readability suffers, but the spirit of freedom clearly foreshadows DMA's later 3D GTA work. For game history enthusiasts and adventurous players, this stands as a notable curiosity worth a careful look.
