Fans ofGrand Theft Auto Onlinewould likely have fun building their criminal enterprises from scratch, especially with the many ways of earning money that range from heists to doing various activities. However, fans ofGrand Theft Auto Onlinewho want something with a more narrative spin may enjoy its various missions, especiallyOperation Paper Trail.
Related:The Most Wholesome Things You Can Do In Grand Theft Auto 5
Of missions inGTA Online, it’s Operation Paper Trail that gives players a rather “Mission Impossible” spin on available quests. In Operation Paper Trail, players are recruited by the IAA in a bid to stop the global manipulation of oil prices, with the mastermind somehow just lurking about in the city. However, how can players start Operation Paper Trail?
Enter The International Affairs Agency
Before fans start Operation Paper Trail, they may want to know a bit more context as to the elements involved in the bigger picture. Unlike other missions that often involve players interact with unsavory elements in Los Santos, Operation Paper Trail will have papers interact with theInternational Affairs Agency, via the United Liberty Paper contact (ULP) named Bernard.
A recurring character throughout the series, Agent ULP works for the United Liberty Paper Merchants, a front of the IAA in Liberty City, who has since been involved with investigatingcriminal elements throughout theGrand Theoft Autogames. The IAA is the equivalent of both of the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Intelligence Agency, where they investigate various anomalous incidents that are usually tied to criminal activities.
What Is Operation Paper Trail?
Throughout the course ofGTA Online, it seems the IAA has caught wind of irregularities involved with soaring gas prices, and in particular with how money has been travelling across the market. Thanks to the help fo players, who Agent ULP will transform into sworn-in IAA agents, they will be able to uncover just whether or not the Duggans and their status as petrochemical magnates have at some point profited illegally from gas prices. Unfortunately, players will also be dragged into something much bigger than they have anticipated.
Beginning Operation Paper Trail
Players actually have two (2) main methods of starting Operation Paper Trail. They need to have “The Criminal Enterprises” update in order for the starting parts of the mission to pop up in the game, alongside the addition ofnew criminal activities inGTA Online. The main method is to visit theIAA Headquarters(marked by a yellow “U” on the corner of Swiss and Power Streets) for the first time, which prompts a call from Agent ULP.
Related:Games To Play If You Love GTA Online
Alternatively, players will also get a call from Agent ULP after finishing the Doomsday Heist and becoming Facility Owners. Unlike the original message, the one received here will be a bit more personalized. However, the general gist of the messages are the same: as civilians, players aren’t allowed to be “in” on the intel. However, Agent ULP has on good authority that players can become reliable agents for them.
Operation Paper Trail: The Missions
While players ofGTA Onlinemight be curious about Operation Paper Trail and simply want to know how to start it, they may as well start getting all the knowledge they know about the mission line. That’s because players who initiate contact with Agent ULP for the first time will likely begin with the first mission immediately. Having an inkling of what the rest of the missions will entail can give players a headstart in terms of both preparation and how to fit Operation Paper Trail with the rest of their missions in the game.
Part One - ULP: Intelligence
First in the Operation Paper Trail missions series isULP: Intelligence. The mission officially begins with a cutscene of Agent ULP telling players that they are now field agents of the IAA, with a sworn-in that “enables” players to “lie” to the American public whenever strategically necessary. The first part of the mission begins when players have tovisit San Andreas Avenuedue to an “old-fashioned conspiracy” involving higher gas prices attributed to the Duggan Crime Family, where Mason Duggan has a residence in the apartment. Once there, they have to hack Mason’s laptop, after which a mini-game reveals the location of two (2) collection points, which players can pursue in any order.
After collecting this hardware, players need to go to a drop-off point near the LSIA warehouse. Players know they’re in the right location once they find an Unmarked Cruiser with two (2) LSIA agents waiting, who will congratulate them.
Part Two - ULP: Counterintelligence
Second in the Operation Paper Trail missions series isULP: Counterintelligence. This begins once ULP calls the player regarding what they’ve found from the stolen hardware, which is confirmation that the Duggans are indeed behind the conspiracy to raise gas prices in the city. However, the nature of the technology the Duggans are using is still being studied. Since the FIB has been alerted of the player’s activities, they need to determine how much intelligence they use to fight the player - hence the mission’s name. Players need to do this in order to complete the mission:
Part Three - ULP: Extraction
Third in the Operation Paper Trail missions series isULP: Extraction. This begins once ULP calls the player and tells them how the FIB has been kept off their tail after the previous mission, but more pressing matters are at hand. The players will then be briefed on how one of their agents has infiltrated the Duggan organization undercover and hasn’t checked in for the past 24 hours. Since players are at this point considered a senior field operative, it’s now their job to bring this agent back. These are the tasks involved in the mission:
Part Four - ULP: Asset Seizure
Fourth in the Operation Paper Trail missions series isULP: Asset Seizure. Now that ULP knows what’s up with the Duggan family’s “secret fortune,” they’ve called the player to inform their newest discovery. In actuality, the Duggan is using some AI program in order to manipulate the global oil market to their advantage. Due to recent activities, the Duggans are afraid people may discover what they’ve been doing and aims to move their technology to somewhere more secure, and this is something players have to intercept. To do this, players need to do the following:
Related:Most Expensive Items you’re able to Purchase In Grand Theft Auto 5, Ranked
Part Five - ULP: Operation Paper Trail
Fifth in the Operation Paper Trail missions series is its namesake,ULP: Operation Paper Trail.TheGTA Onlinemissionofficially begins when the ULP tells player how their teams have gone through the stolen hardware and have discovered something dire. It seems there’s a part of the AI system - Cliffford - that is backed up in drives located in the FIB. The Duggans are also going on a deal to acquire the said backups, which players need to stop. Here are the steps players need to do to accomplish the mission:
Interestingly enough, fans ofGTA Onlinemay already be familiar with Cliffford. They may remember this AI as the same AI players have to deal with in “The Doomsday Heist,” with Cliffford being a sophisticated neural network based on the megalomaniac Avon Hertz.
Part Six - ULP: Cleanup
Sixth and last part in the Operation Paper Trail missions series isULP: Cleanup. After the dealings with Duggans have officially removed them from the global oil scene, ULP will call the player to instruct them to do one final thing to ensure none of this happens again. This involves stealing the remains of the AI Cliffford and end things with it permanently. To do so, players need to do the following:
After giving the agent the phone with the data, the mission series will finally be completed.
Grand Theft Auto Onlineis playable on the PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S.
More:Most Useful Purchases In Grand Theft Auto 5 Online (& Most Useless)
