Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was one of the most controversial video games of it's time. Many parents, mothers especially, were outraged at the amount of violence, the encouraging of crime, and the biggest culprit, the sex that is alluded to in the game. Well, as shown with "Married With Children" and "Family Guy", the only thing these protests did was made the game more well known and sought after. This is when I knew I had to have this game. With so many people talking about it, even if it were as bad as some select parents cried about, I knew it would still be good. Well, I was right.
Having played all of the GTA games, I would have to say that Vice City still ranks as one of, if not, the best of the series. Based on the early 80's, this game captured the era so well. From everything from the music on the radio, to the tacky clothing everyone was wearing, and even the fast cars you'd know automatically that this was definitely the 80's.
The soundtrack was defintely one of the highlights of this game. Not only did it make the game feel that much more authentic as you drive down the street in your Lamborghini Countach (differently named in-game of course), but the music wasn't terrible to listen too, either. The song selection is outstanding, and almost every song emphasizes the era in some way or another. The DJs of the radio stations are a little too stereotypical for my tastes, but the voice-over artists made it work. Commercials were generally comical and fun to listen to, and even to this day I still refer to Jack Howitzer and Giggle Cream as an inside joke.
The supporting characters were well placed in the game, and the dialogue was impressive. Each person was stereotypical in their own way, but to a humorous point. Many of the supporting characters don't last long, as they generally fade away the further into the plot you go, but even the smallest of roles were well done and seemed necessary even if they were not. I don't want to spoil the game too much, even though it being over 6 years old, so I won't go much more into the characters in the game. Once you play the game, you'll get a feel for it, anyway.
Finally, on to the gameplay. Being marketed as a free roam game is what made Grand Theft Auto the game it is today, and also prevents any game in the series from being just another game on your shelf. The fact that you can pop in the game at any given time, drive around killing people, or whatever else you deem fun, and it needing not have anything to do with the storyline is what, in my mind, makes for a great game. Well, in that aspect, this game passes on all levels. Mix that with one hell of a storyline and some of the greatest graphics of it's time, this game was amazing to play, especially if playing for the first time.
Now, as with most anything, not everything is perfect. While this game is amazing in many aspects, there are also some cons, one of which is the map size. When you start playing the game, you have to do a select number of mission to unlock the rest of the map, which to you at the time seems like a vast wonderland of murder, sex, and stealing cars. Not soon enough do you realize, however, that the map is very small. Getting from one side of the map to the other takes no more than 5-7 minutes, at most. Now the upside to a small map is knowing how to navigate it sooner; something especially good for missions, but if you want to roam around away from the missions, you'll find yourself getting bored within the hour. Another big downfall with the game is the damage meter on any vehicle. When doing missions, you need to get from one place on the map to another. Seeing the AI is terrible, you'll end up hitting a lot of cars/people essentially killing your car. This can be a huge pain if you're limited to that 1 car for the mission (i.e. Taxi missions) and the mission ends when the car goes A-Splode. Another thing is when a car flips upside-down, it immediately catches fire and blows up; another pain in the ass seeing you have no chance to steal another car and try to flip over your now totaled vehicle.
All things considered, this game is good. If not for the few cons that plague it, this would be a great game and get 5 stars. Cons aside, I still find myself coming back to this game time and time again meaning that Rockstar Games did something right. If you haven't played this game, I would indefinitely recommend it.
Customer reviews
Top reviews from other countries
Amazon Customer
installation problem
Reviewed in India on March 29, 2019
installation problem
Reviewed in India on March 29, 2019
not able to istall.👎
Reviewed in India on March 29, 2019
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Sivaramakrishna
Waste don't buy
Reviewed in India on May 24, 2019
Waste don't buy
Reviewed in India on May 24, 2019
I did not get GTA vc play CDReviewed in India on May 24, 2019
It is totally waste money loss
Last time when I bought it I got all 2cd and now I got only 1cd
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