Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas/Controls

If you do not own the Playstation 2 version, you may still find it useful to study the controls for that format, since other pages may refer to those controls directly.

Playstation 2

You can also see a map of controls in the game by pressing the START button and selecting the controls options.

On Foot

• Triangle Button:
  • Enter vehicle
  • Activate mini-game
  • Secondary attack while unarmed
  • Pick up object
  • Skip phone conversation
• Circle Button: Attack/fire weapon
• X Button: Run (hold)/sprint (tap rapidly)/skip cutscene
  • Zoom out with sniper rifle/camera
• Square Button: Jump/climb/block (while fighting)
  • Zoom in with sniper rifle/camera
• L2 Button: cycle weapons left
  • Zoom in with sniper rifle/camera/pause map
• L1 Button:
  • Center camera
  • View vital stats about your character
  • Fire weapon while targeted
• R2 Button:
  • Switch weapons one to the right of your current one
  • Zoom out with sniper rifle/camera/pause map
• R1 Button: Target an individual with the selected weapon
• L3 Button: (Push the left analog control inwards) Crouch (move while crouching to sneak)
• SELECT button: Cycle through available camera modes
• START button: Pause menu/skip cutscene
• R3 button: (Push the right analog control inwards) Look behind CJ
• DPad-Up: recruit gang members
• DPad-Down: Gang sign to tell gang members to wait (briefly press button) or leave you (hold down button)
• DPad-Left: Answer no when prompted for yes/no
• DPad-Right: Answer yes when prompted for yes/no

In Vehicle

• X: Accelerate
• Square: Brake/Reverse
• Circle: Fire Weapon
• Triangle: Exit Vehicle
• L1: Change Radio Station/Nitros/Vehicle Weapon
• L2: Look to left of vehicle
• R1: Handbrake
• R2: Look to right of vehicle
• L2+R2: Look behind vehicle
• Left Analog Stick: Steering
• L3: Horn/Siren/Lock Hydraulics
• Right Analog Stick: Hydraulics/Vehicle Weapon Aim
• R3: Hydraulics, Start/End Vehicle Mission

Xbox

You can also see a map of controls in the game by pressing the START button and selecting the controls options.

Always

• Start: Pause menu
• Back Button: Cycle camera mode.
• Right Thumbstick: Rotate camera (except where otherwise noted) or switch camera in cinematic view

On Foot

• Left Thumbstick: Move CJ
• Left Thumbstick Click: Crouch
• Left Trigger: Center camera; view stats; pick up object
• Y: Enter vehicle; activate minigame
• B: Untargeted attack; weapon fire
• A: Run (hold); sprint (tap rapidly)
• X: Jump; climb
• White: Cycle weapon left
• Black: Cycle weapon right
• D-Pad Up: Recruit gang member (after targeting with right trigger)
• D-Pad Down: Order gang member to be "passive" (press) or disperse (hold)
• D-Pad Left: Negative response
• D-Pad Right: Affirmative response

Melee

• Right Trigger: lock on target
• X: attack; block
• Y: secondary attack

Targeted shooting

• Right Trigger: lock on target
• Left Trigger: fire weapon

First Person Shooting (as with a sniper rifle or camera)

• Left Trigger: Shoot
• White/Black: Zoom in/out
• B: Shoot
• Right Thumbstick: Aim
• Left Thumbstick: Aim
• Right Trigger: Return to Normal Controls
• Left Thumstick Click: Crouch

Vehicles

General

• Y Button: Exit vehicle
• X Button: Hand brake
• Left Thumbstick: Steering
• Right Thumbstick: Camera rotate
• White Button: Look left (then A for drive-by)
• Black Button: Look right (then A for drive-by)
• Black+White: Rear view
• D-Pad Up/Down: Cycle radio stations
• Right Click: Launch vehicle mission (where applicable)

Cars

• Right Trigger: Accelerate
• Left Trigger: Brake; reverse (when stopped)
• A: Nitrous boost
• B: Nitrous boost
• D-Pad Right: Trip Skip (when available)
• Right Thumbstick: Turret control; hydraulics (when available)

Motorcycles

• Right Trigger: Accelerate
• Left Trigger: Front brake; back up (when stopped)
• A Button: Shoot machine pistol/SMG (if you have them)
• Left Thumbstick Up/Down: Lean forward/backward
• X Button: Rear brake

Bicycles

• Right Trigger: Pedal (hold); pedal faster(tap)
• Left Trigger: Front brake; back up (when stopped)
• B Button: Bunny hop (hold for higher hop)
• X Button: Rear brake
• A Button: Shoot machine pistol/SMG (if you have them)
• Left Thumbstick Up/Down: Lean forward/backward

Aircraft

General

• Black Button: Rudder (yaw) right
• White Button: Rudder (yaw) left
• Left Thumbstick: Pitch (left/right); roll (forward/backward)
• Right Thumbstick: Turret/camera

Helicopters

• R Trigger: Ascend
• Left Trigger: Descend
• Left Thumbstick Click: Hover
• B Button: Primary weapon
• A Button: Alternate weapon

Airplanes

• R Trigger: thrust
• L Trigger: Reverse thrust
• Right Thumbstick Click: Raise/lower landing gear

Boats

This section is a stub. Help us expand it, and you get a cookie.

Swimming

• Left Thumbstick: Move CJ
• A Button: Swim fast (hold)/faster(tap rapidly)
• B Button: Dive
• X Button: Climb out of water (into boat, perhaps)
• Y Button: Control boat once you are in it

Xbox 360

On an Xbox 360 playing in backwards-compatibility mode, the right and left bumpers are mapped to the black and white buttons respectively. Everything else is the same as in the Xbox section.

PC

You can also see a map of controls in the game by pressing the ESC key and selecting the controls options.

• 2: Toggle vehicle missions
• C: Crouch
• LShift: Jump / Bunny Hop (BMX)
• LAlt: Sneak
• Space: Sprint
• LMB: Fire
• RMB: Aim
• Caps Lock: Sound Horn; sirens on and off
• G: Recruit gang member, call gang members to you
• H: Tell gang members to hold ground, if held down disbands gang
• Y: Positive response
• N: Negative response
• Esc: Bring up game menus, pause game
• F1: Replay last 30 seconds of gameplay
• F2: Save last 30 second replay
• F3: Load a saved 30 second replay