GTA - My Only Vice (Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2))

Member Name: DJBorley

Product:	Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2)
Date:	02/03/03 (1040 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Superbly addictive game. Excellent graphics., Great soundtrack

Disadvantages: Too addictive!

GTA - My only vice.

Grand Theft Auto - Vice City has been out for a few months now, but a driving, beat-'em-up mafia-type game has never appealed to me, so despite thinking GTA2 on the Playstation was an ok game, I was never tempted to buy Vice City. Then my birthday came around.
At the back end of January I opened my pressies surrounded by the family (or should I say that my two year old opened my pressies before I had a chance to blink), and sitting on the top of the pile was Vice City for the Playstation 2.

* Manufacturer

The game is made by Rockstar Games and is rated an 18, for reasons which become fairly apparent when you start playing.

* History

Picture the scene: It's the 1980's. Tommy Vercetti is sent to Vice City by Sonny Forelli, his old boss, having just completed a long stretch in maximum security. Forelli is understandably nervous about Tommy's re-appearance in Liberty City, hence the trip down South. However, his arrival in the bustling city does not go at all smoothly. The deal that he is sent to complete turns out to be a set up and Tommy is left with no money and no merchandise. Sonny wants a return from his investment in the deal, but the general low-life in Vice City make this a hard task. This is where the adventure starts.

* Missions

The game itself sets you, as Tommy Vercetti, completing missions and challenges in a build-up to getting the goods back for Sonny Forelli. Although the challenges to start off with are fairly mundane and easy, they serve as a good introduction to the basics of the game. Start off by stealing a car and running some people over whilst you get used to the steering controls. A few stolen cars later and you begin to realise that each car handles differently. Mug a few pedestrians, buy a gun, learn to do wheelies on motorbikes and generally mess around and you'll have the hang of the game in no time.

Your first mission is fai
rly simple. By going to see your lawyer, Ken Rosenberg, an edgy guy whose fearful attitude is probably attributed to his alcohol and cocaine problem. You can find him by following the "L" on your map. Ken will give you your first contact with the criminal underworld in Vice City, asking you to get a change of clothes and then to go on to Col Cortez's boat, where you will be asked to take his daughter to the Pole Position club. An easy enough mission, with a $100 reward. Once again, you can find the change of clothes, the boat and the club by following indications on your map.

And this is how the game goes on, getting progressively more challenging, introducing weapons, from screwdrivers to chainsaws to missile launchers, vehicles such as helicopters and boats, and a host of other bits and pieces. To say that it will take months to fully play and appreciate the depth of this game is no understatement, as each time you play it, you seem to notice something new.

* What's needed

Analogue Control Compatible: all buttons
Vibration Function compatible
1 player
Memory card (8MB) (for Playstation 2:500KB minimum)

* Music

As this game is set in the 1980's, the soundtrack that accompanies it is all 80's music. Every time you get into a car, you'll find that the radio is on. A quick click on the change station button and you'll be flicking through a number of channels. Michael Jackson, Mister Mister, Mary Jane Girls - There are more than enough songs to keep the stations interesting, and the game alive.

* Graphics

As I said before, absolutely unbelievable. This game uses the PS2 to it's full potential, and it's no wonder that Vice City is such a huge seller.

* Price

The game retails at around £35 in most shops, though GamesDepot.co.uk has it for £29.97 inc. free p&p.

* Overall

This game is addictive. From when you first load it
and see it's Sinclair Spectrum / C64 start-up screen, and then hear the first strains of "Video Killed The Radio Star", you'll know that this game is something else. The sheer amount that there is to see and do in the game is outstanding, and I doubt that you'll regret buying this (unless, like my other half, you buy it for your fiancé, in which case you're unlikely to see him again for several weeks!)

Summary: