The roll is a combat ability introduced in GTA San Andreas, allowing you to roll side to side during encounters. It adds a bit of extra maneuverability to the clunkier gameplay of the sixth-generation Grand Theft Auto titles. Maybe it’s been years since you’ve played or maybe this is your first time exploring Los Santos. Either way, rolling is simple.
GTA San Andreas doesn’t teach you how to roll, but you’re able to do it within the first hour. During the opening tutorial sections as the game slowly introduces its open world features and gameplay, an early story mission sees you tagging spots with graffiti. While you’ll most likely use the combat roll with guns, you don’t have to wait that long.
In order to roll, you’ll need to crouch by pressing down the left stick. From the crouched position, you’ll want to aim your selected equipment whether it’s a gun or spray paint can and aim with the left trigger on an Xbox controller or its equivalent on PlayStation and Switch. Flicking the left stick right or left while aiming initiates the dodge roll. Keep in mind that you can only roll with items that let you aim. This rules out melee weapons like the brass knuckles, for example.
