Vice City's evolution throughout the GTA series explored

Vice City is one of the most important cities in the Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series, and it appears in the 3D Universe titles: Grand Theft Auto Vice City and Vice City Stories. While the city is already well-known among fans, it has recently become the talk of the town as the location for the upcoming game.

Although Rockstar Games is yet to reveal any official details about GTA 6, recent leaks have provided a glimpse into HD Universe Vice City. The information implies that the next game might well take place in Vice City.

This article explores how the location changed over time, moving from a 3D universe to an HD universe in the GTA franchise.

Note: This article is subjective and only reflects the writer's opinions.

---

The evolution of Vice City throughout the GTA franchise

The fictional metropolis of Vice was first introduced to fans in the 2002 game, GTA Vice City. The city is based in real-life Miami, Florida. The game depicted a timeline of 1986 and accurately portrayed Miami at the time.

However, Vice City's history can be traced back to GTA Vice City Stories, which took place in 1984, two years before GTA Vice City. Although Vice City Stories was released after Vice City, the former is a prequel that explains the events of the metropolis.

Vice City Stories tells the story of Victor "Vic" Vance, an army soldier working in Vice City. While Victor is an honest man, he is constantly antagonized by his superior, Sergeant Jerry Martinez, who eventually falsely accused him and discharged him from the army. Following that, Victor joins his brother Lance Vance and becomes fully immersed in the criminal underworld.

Two years later, Tommy Vercetti, a member of the Forelli Crime Family, visited Vice City after being released from prison to supervise a drug deal between the Forellis and the Vance brothers. However, the deal was ambushed by assassins, resulting in Victor Vance's death and the loss of Tommy's money.

Lance Vance then joins Tommy's side and assists him in his quest to find the mastermind behind the ambush. He also helped the latter become Vice City's kingpin. However, he later betrayed him and sided with Tommy's former boss, Sonny Forelli.

After killing them both, Tommy took control of Vice City alone and declared the Vercetti Mansion to be his stronghold.

Vice City is made up of two major islands surrounded by a vast ocean: Vice City Beach island and Vice City Mainland island. Each has several districts and locations, with two smaller islands in the middle called Starfish Island and Prawn Island.

While GTA Vice City begins on the Vice City Beach island and later expands to the other island, GTA Vice City Stories begins on the Vice City Mainland island and vice versa. In both games, the authorities blocked the connecting bridges, citing severe weather conditions in the oceans.

Both games use the same map, with minor differences here and there. The developers perfectly explained how the changes in the locations came to fruition. Nonetheless, the majority of the elements remain the same.

However, the leaked version of HD Universe Vice City shows significant changes to the locations. The alleged videos depict extremely detailed locations, shops, structures, and surroundings. Vehicles and NPCs also appear to be modern, indicating that the game is set in the present day.

---

Note: The leaked data cannot be shown here due to legal restrictions.