Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is a 2002 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the fourth main game in the Grand Theft Auto series, following 2001's Grand Theft Auto III, and the sixth entry overall. Set in 1986 within the fictional Vice City, the single-player story follows gangster Tommy Vercetti's rise to power after being released from prison and becoming caught up in an ambushed drug deal. While seeking out those responsible, Tommy gradually builds a criminal empire by seizing power from other criminal organisations.
The game is played from a third-person perspective and its world is navigated on foot or by vehicle. The open world design lets the player freely roam Vice City, consisting of two main islands. The game's plot is based on multiple real-world people and events in Miami such as Cubans, Haitians, and biker gangs, the 1980s crack epidemic, the Mafioso drug lords of Miami, and the dominance of glam metal. The game was also influenced by the films and television of the era, most notably Scarface and Miami Vice. Much of the development work constituted creating the game world to fit the inspiration and time period; the development team conducted extensive field research in Miami while creating the world. The game was released in October 2002 for the PlayStation 2.
Vice City received critical acclaim, with praise directed at its music, gameplay, story, and open world design, though it generated controversy over its depiction of violence and racial groups. It received year-end accolades from several gaming publications, and it is considered one of the sixth generation of console gaming's most significant titles and among the best video games ever made. Vice City became the best-selling game of 2002 and one of the best-selling PlayStation 2 games with over 14.2 million copies sold; it has sold over 17.5 million copies overall. It was released for Windows and the Xbox in 2003, followed by enhanced versions and mobile ports in the 2010s and a remastered version in 2021. It was followed by Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and a prequel, Vice City Stories.
Gameplay
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is an action-adventure game played from a third-person perspective. The player controls mobster Tommy Vercetti and completes missions—linear scenarios with set objectives—to progress through the story. It is possible to have several missions available at a time, as some missions require the player to wait for further instructions or events. Outside of missions, the player can freely roam the game's open world and has the ability to complete optional side missions. Composed of two main islands and several smaller areas, the world is much larger in area than earlier entries in the series. The islands are unlocked for the player as the story progresses.The player may run, jump, or drive vehicles to navigate the game's world. The player uses melee attacks, firearms and explosives to fight enemies. The firearms include weapons such as the Colt Python, an M60 machine gun and a minigun. The game's three-dimension environment allows a first-person view while aiming with the sniper rifle and rocket launcher. In addition, the game's combat allows the player to commit drive-by shootings by facing sideways in a vehicle. A wide variety of weapon options can be purchased from local firearms dealers, found on the ground, retrieved from dead enemies, or found around the city.
In combat, auto-aim can be used as assistance against enemies. Should the player take damage, their health meter can be fully regenerated through the use of health pick-ups. Body armour pickups can be used to absorb gunshots and explosive damage, but is used up in the process. When health is entirely depleted, gameplay stops and the player respawns at the nearest hospital while losing all weapons and armour and some of their money. If the player commits crimes while playing, the game's law enforcement agencies may respond as indicated by a "wanted" meter in the head-up display, which increases as the player commits more crimes. On the meter, the displayed stars indicate the current wanted level, and the higher the level, the greater the response for law enforcement.
During the story, Tommy meets characters from various gangs. As the player completes missions for different gangs, fellow gang members will often defend the player, while rival gang members will recognise the player and subsequently shoot on sight. While free roaming the game world, the player may engage in activities such as a vigilante minigame, a firefighting activity, a paramedic service and a taxi service. Completion of these activities grants the player with context-specific rewards. As Tommy builds his criminal empire, the player may purchase a number of properties distributed across the city, some of which act as additional hideouts where weapons can be collected and vehicles can be stored. There are also a variety of businesses which can be purchased, including a pornographic film studio, a taxi company, and several entertainment clubs. Each commercial property has a number of missions attached to it, such as eliminating competition or stealing equipment; once all missions are complete, the property begins to generate an ongoing income available for the player.
Plot
In 1986, gangster Tommy Vercetti is released from prison after serving a fifteen-year sentence for murder. His boss Sonny Forelli, seeking to establish drug operations in the South, sends Tommy to Vice City, Florida, to oversee an important drug deal alongside crooked lawyer Ken Rosenberg. However, the deal is ambushed by unknown assailants, with Tommy and Ken barely escaping. An infuriated Sonny orders Tommy to recover the drugs, alongside the money Sonny gave to him, under threat of consequences. Seeking information, Ken points Tommy towards retired army colonel Juan Garcia Cortez, who helped set up the exchange. Expressing regret for the ambush, Cortez promises to find out who masterminded it. Cortez also serves as a mentor to Tommy, encouraging him to act increasingly independent of Sonny and the Forelli family.While investigating, Tommy meets with others who become allies and partners, including band manager Kent Paul, who maintains connections with the city's criminal underworld; freelancer Lance Vance, who aided in the deal and lost his brother in the ambush; Texan business tycoon Avery Carrington, who in return enlists Tommy's help with several deals; and drug lord Ricardo Diaz, who employs both Tommy and Lance. Eventually, Cortez begins voicing his suspicions that Diaz organised the ambush. Upon further investigation, Lance discovers this to be true and, against Tommy's advice, tries to kill Diaz, only to get himself captured. After Tommy saves Lance, they invade Diaz's mansion and kill him.
With Diaz dead, Tommy takes over his assets and, at Avery's suggestion, works to expand his new criminal empire by forcing businesses to pay him protection money and buying out nearly bankrupt companies to use as fronts for illicit operations. Tommy establishes his own gang to protect his businesses from rivals, and provides assistance to several prominent gang leaders in the hopes they will support his expansion. Finally located by agents of the French government, Cortez fends off assassination with Tommy's help, and the two men part amicably as the Colonel's yacht leaves for safer waters. Eventually, Sonny discovers that Tommy has gained complete control over Vice City's drug trade without cutting the Forellis in. Enraged at his independence, Sonny sends mobsters to forcefully collect money from Tommy's businesses. In response, Tommy hunts down and kills each of Sonny's men, severing his last ties with the Forelli family.
As Sonny arrives with numerous men to collect the money he believes he is owed, Tommy angrily confronts Sonny, accusing him of having framed him fifteen years ago. Sonny confirms this and reveals Lance has betrayed Tommy and allied himself with the Forellis, having felt inadequate in Tommy's presence since his rise to power. A shootout ensues in Tommy's mansion, during which Tommy prevents the Forellis from stealing his money and kills Lance for his betrayal, before finally killing Sonny. With the Forelli family destroyed, no one remains to stand in Tommy's way, and he and Ken optimistically discuss Tommy's status as the undisputed ruler of Vice City.
Development
's core 50-person team led the eighteen-month development of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Full production began in late 2001, as Grand Theft Auto III was nearing completion. While early development only involved creating 3D models, executive producer Sam Houser said "it really kicked off at the beginning of 2002" and lasted about nine months. After the release of the Windows version of Grand Theft Auto III, the development team discussed creating a mission pack for the game that would have added new weapons, vehicles, and missions. Upon further discussion, the team decided to adapt this concept into a stand-alone game, which became Vice City.The game was announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo on 22 May 2002. It was Rockstar North's most expensive game at the time, with a development budget of and marketing budget of. On 5 September 2002, Rockstar announced the release date of 22 October had been postponed until 29 October to meet product demand. By 15 October, development of Vice City stopped as the game was submitted for manufacturing. It was released for the PlayStation 2 on 29 October in North America, and on 8 November in Europe. Capcom published the game in Japan on 20 May 2004 for PlayStation 2 and Windows. The game was added to the Rockstar Games Launcher in September 2019.
Setting
The game is set in 1986 in fictional Vice City, which is based heavily on the city of Miami, Florida. Vice City previously appeared in the original Grand Theft Auto ; the development team decided to reuse the location and incorporate ideas from within the studio and from the fanbase. They wanted to satirise a location that was not contemporary, in contrast to Grand Theft Auto IIIs modern-day Liberty City. The team wanted to choose a location that had similarities and differences to New York City—the inspiration of Liberty City—eventually leading them to Miami, which producer Leslie Benzies described as "a party town, all sun and sea and sex, but with that same dark edge underneath". Sam Houser called it "the grooviest era of crime because it didn't even feel like it was crime ... it was a totally topsy-turvy back-to-front period of time". The team intended to make Vice City a "living, breathing city" so the player would feel like "life still goes on" while their character was inside a building.The game's look, particularly the clothing and vehicles, reflects its 1980s setting. Many themes were borrowed from the crime films Scarface and Carlito's Way, the latter for its characterisation of nuanced criminals. The television series Miami Vice was also a major influence and was regularly watched by the team throughout development. Art director Aaron Garbut used the series as a reference point for emulating neon lighting. In recreating a 1980s setting, the team found it "relatively painless" due to the distinct culture of the time period and the team's familiarity with the era. The art team was provided with large volumes of research, as well as reference photographs taken by other members of the development team. The team organised field research trips to Miami shortly after completing the development of Grand Theft Auto III, splitting into small teams and observing the streets.