For those of you old enough to play GTA 1 and GTA 2, how popular was the series then before GTA 3?

[HoloDust]

I played GTA 1 when it came out, but I don't remember it being big amongst my friends...1997 was year of Diablo, Fallout, Age of Empires, Tomb Raider 2, Quake II and Riven: The Sequel to Myst, among others, so I can see how it got mostly unnoticed...though I do remember my brother playing it like there's no tomorrow...