In GTA 2, “Respect is Everything”: the gangs decide which jobs you can take, who shoots at you and who covers you from the police. This guide explains every GTA 2 gang district by district, how the respect meter works, and how to keep the right gangs on your side so you can unlock the best missions in Anywhere City.
Key facts
- Seven gangs spread over three districts: Downtown, Residential and Industrial.
- Three gangs per district, always including the Zaibatsu Corporation.
- Respect rises when you work for a gang or kill its rivals, and falls when you fail its jobs or kill its members.
- Phones come in green, yellow and red, from easiest to hardest; your respect decides which ones you can use.
The GTA 2 gangs, district by district
| District | Gangs |
|---|---|
| Downtown | Zaibatsu Corporation, Loonies, Yakuza |
| Residential | Zaibatsu Corporation, Rednecks, SRS Scientists |
| Industrial | Zaibatsu Corporation, Russian Mafia, Hare Krishna |
Zaibatsu Corporation
The only gang present in all three districts. On the surface it is a corporation making everything from cars to medicine; underneath it deals in narcotics, contract killing and politics. Its symbol is a yellow “Z”, its gang car the Z-Type, and it is run through a different executive in each district: Trey Welsh Downtown, Red Valdez in the Residential District and Uno Carb in the Industrial District.
Loonies
A Downtown gang based around the SunnySide mental institution. Their symbol is a winking smiley face, their car the Dementia microcar, and their boss is Elmo.
Yakuza
The second Downtown rival, making drugs in their J-Lab. Their symbol is a blue yen sign, their car the Miara, and their boss is Johnny Zoo.
SRS Scientists
A secretive research institute in the Residential District, working on advanced weapons, cloning and robotics under Dr. LaBrat. Their street members are clone soldiers, and their car, the Meteor, is the fastest gang car in the game.
Rednecks
The other Residential gang, led by Billy Bob Bean. They run moonshine, love explosives and drive a wide pickup truck.
Russian Mafia and Hare Krishna
The Industrial District’s rival gangs, alongside the Zaibatsu. The Hare Krishna are the source of the famous “Gouranga!” bonus you get for running over a whole line of them.
How the respect system works
Your HUD shows a respect meter for each of the three gangs in the current district. They all start neutral, then change with your actions:
- Respect goes up when you complete a gang’s mission or kill members of an opposing gang.
- Respect goes down when you fail one of its missions or kill its members. Using explosives on a gang makes it drop faster.
- Neutral or better respect lets you take that gang’s jobs from its payphones.
- Positive respect means that gang’s members will protect you from the police and other gangs.
Because the gangs in a district are rivals, working for one usually costs you respect with another. That is the core strategic choice of GTA 2.
Phone colours: green, yellow and red jobs
Each gang offers jobs from coloured payphones. The respect meter lights up to show which ones you can use: green phones for easy jobs, yellow for medium and red for the hardest and best-paid. To reach the red phones, you need a high respect level with that gang.
Tips to manage respect
- Pick one gang to favour in each district and grind its rivals to raise your respect quickly.
- Avoid explosives near friendly gangs: a stray rocket can wreck respect you spent an hour building.
- Use gang protection: with positive respect, friendly gang members will fight the police for you.
- Stuck? Our GTA 2 cheat codes include weapons, health and more for the PC version.
FAQ
How many gangs are in GTA 2?
There are seven: the Zaibatsu Corporation, Loonies, Yakuza, SRS Scientists, Rednecks, Russian Mafia and Hare Krishna.
Which gang is in every district of GTA 2?
The Zaibatsu Corporation appears in the Downtown, Residential and Industrial districts.
How do you gain respect in GTA 2?
Complete a gang’s missions or kill members of its rival gangs. Failing its jobs or killing its members lowers respect.
What do the phone colours mean in GTA 2?
Green phones offer easy jobs, yellow medium jobs and red the hardest ones. Higher respect unlocks the harder phones.
What is “Gouranga” in GTA 2?
It is the bonus message you get for running over a whole line of Hare Krishna members.
