Parental Warning: Grand Theft Auto Vice City Stories is not a game for children. The rating is MA which is meant for adults over the age of 18. The review for this game is loaded with language and suggestive words and also not meant for those under age 18. The reality is many children under the age of 18 do in fact play this game and are probably reading this review right now. That is between them and their parents. I cannot supervise children who read this review nor can I be in your living room to stop them. That is your job.
If you are a parent, at least be aware if your children are playing this game and set down boundaries for them. If you choose to let them play, make sure they know the difference between fantasy and reality, most children do understand the difference and would never do these things in real life. A handful of disturbed individuals, regardless of age, may be unduly influenced by this game. If you are responsible for such a person, please make sure they are not playing it.
Grand Theft Auto is a game that glorifies killing and general bad behavior including drugs and illicit sex. It is a game for sick degenerates who think it is funny, myself included. All of the Rockstar series of the Grand Theft Auto Games are rated MA.
This is the guide for Vice City Stories for the Play Station 2, not the PSP. This contains spoilers as well as tips on how to get through the mission.
Helpful Maps
Before you play, click on the links below and print out the helpful maps.
Cheats And Unlockables
| Cheat |
Code |
| Weapons Package 1 |
Left, Right, X, Up, Down, Square, Left, Right |
| Weapons Package 2 |
Left, Right, Square, Up, Down, Triangle, Left, Right |
| Weapons Package 3 |
Left, Right, Triangle, Up, Down, Circle, Left, Righ |
| Destroy Nearby Cars |
L1, R1, R1, Left, Right, Square, Down, R1 |
| Full Armor |
Up, Down, Left, Right, Square, Square, L1, R1 |
| Full Health |
Up, Down, Left, Right, Circle, Circle, L1, R1 |
| Instant $250,000 |
Up, Down, Left, Right, X, X, L1, R1 |
| Pedestrian Attacks You |
Down, Triangle, Up, X, L1, R1, L1, R1 |
| Pedestrians With Weapons |
UP, L1, Down, R1, Left, Circle, Right, Triangle |
| Riot In The Streets |
R1, L1, L1, Down, Left, Circle, Down, L1 |
| Spawn Rhino |
Up, L1, Down, R1, Left, L1, Right, R1 |
| Spawn Trashmaster |
Down, Up, Right, Triangle, L1, Triangle, L1, Triangle |
| Suicide |
Right, Right, Circle, Circle, L1, R1, Down, X |
| Not Wanted By Cops |
Up, Right, Triangle, Triangle, Down, Left, X, X |
| Cars Avoid You |
Up, Up, Right, Left, Triangle, Circle, Circle, Square |
| Followed By Guys |
Right, L1, Down, L1, Circle, Up, L1, Square |
| Balloons To Collect |
Weapon Reward |
| 10 |
Pistol |
| 20 |
Scorpion |
| 30 |
Stubby Shotgun |
| 40 |
Molotov Cocktails |
| 50 |
AK-47 |
| 60 |
Armor |
| 70 |
Flamethrower |
| 80 |
Equalizer |
| 90 |
Sniper Rifle |
| 99 |
M249 |
Other Goodies
For 100% completion, you can Watch mission cut scenes at Clymenus Suite and get unlimited ammo, plus the Winners Outfit.
Completely take over all the empire sites and get bulletproof cars in front of them. Comes in handy during certain missions.
Casual Clothes, your first outfit earned, after you finish Conduct Unbecoming. Trailer Trash Clothes are yours when you beat D.I.V.O.R.C.E. Cuban Clothes after doing all the dirty work for Umberto. Get the Wet Suit for all 8 Jetski races at the Film Studio. Finish Brawn of the Dead and get the Pastel Suit. Win Over the Top and get your Army Fatigues back.
The empire business will give you certain outfits if you buy the high roller business of each category: Drug Dealer - track suit; Smuggling - smugglers outfit; Loan Shark - repo clothes; Prostitution - leisure clothes; Robbery - hood clothes; Protection Racket - hired muscle clothes
Complete 50 fares on Taxi missions and taxis will jump with L3. 15 level finish of Paramedic will allow infinite sprint. 15 levels of Vigilante will boost your armor. 15 levels of Air Ambulance will boost health. 15 levels of Firefighting will make you fireproof. 15 levels of Beach Patrol gives unlimited swimming ability. Deliver 32 cars to the Impound yard for free Pay N Spray service.
And these unlockables are vehicles you can purchase: Conduct Unbecoming - Bulletproof Sanchez; When Funday Comes - Quad Bike; To Victor, the Spoils - Bulletproof Ventoso; From Zero to Hero - Little Willie, SPLITZ-6 ATV and Skimmer; Kill Phil - Bulletproof Stretch; Beach Patrol - Bulletproof BF Injection.
In the beginning, Victor Vance is a soldier living on the base. He is about as straight as they come because his whole family depends on him. He has a very disturbed asshole of a commander, Jerry Martinez who is about to change his life.
I strongly recommend you finish the first mission so you will have a safe house and then do other jobs that will help you play better - Ambulance (infinite running), Fire fighter (fireproof on foot), Vigilante (increased body armor), and Taxi (Hydraulic Boost in all taxis). The first three have 15 levels to complete it and if you fail, you start back at level one unless you get to the checkpoint. If you hit the checkpoint and fail after that you start at your last checkpoint. The taxi will let you complete as soon as you have accumulated $5000 in fares or 50 drop offs. The best part is you will earn a lot of money before the game really gets started, improve your weak points to survive some of the tougher missions, and learn the layout of the area. Also, by doing this now it keeps these points in one area instead of going too far. Click here for hints on these side missions. (it's right after 99 Red Balloons).
Most of the other side missions should be held off until you open the second island. If you want to just jump in, skip these sides until you open the other island.
If you shoot at the soldiers on the base, they will eventually shoot back at you, but at least you can grab their weapons when they die. Just make sure you run to your barracks and save before you die.
Soldier (1/10 difficulty)
His senior officer, Jerry Martinez, is a prick who has him do dirty errands for him. One of them is to pick up a package. Take the bike and go to the blip and a cutscene will take place as the transaction goes down and then the attack on the boat. Swim to shore and get back home.
Reward: $50
Cleaning House (1/10 difficulty)
Jerry is expecting some money from Phil, but sends Vic out to do it. Take the bike and meet with Phil Cassidy. He doesn't have the money, but it is in his old place where he was evicted. Vic needs to kill off all the Mexican gang bangers (Cholos) hanging about to gain access inside. Once inside, kill the two guys and a cutscene will take place for Vic taking the money. Return the money to Jerry.
Reward: $100
Conduct Unbecoming (2/10 difficulty)
Jerry is making Vic nervous having to hide the weed and insists he takes his weed. In the meantime, he requests Vic get Mary for him because he is ever so lonely and having trouble controlling his hands while watching a video. While you have Jerry's promise to collect the weed, go over to Phil's apartment and get a car so you can find Mary. Approach a helpful hooker named Mona who will take you to the party at Starfish Island. Mary is tied up with other customers who refuse to let her go. Pop them and take Mary in your car. Return to the base and get court martialed.
Reward: A place to stay thanks to Phil.
There is a bullet-proof Sanchez you can buy for $4000. These vehicles should be stored because they will not respawn after the purchase. If you lose it, you have to buy it again. That's the same with all the vehicles to purchase.
Before you do the Phil mission next, take some time to complete the Shooting Range mission. There are 5 levels with different guns - Pistol, Uzi, Shotgun, M4 and Sniper. Pass it and you get $2500 + a discount when you buy weapons from Phil.
Cholo Victory (2/10 difficulty)
Phil seems to be under the influence when Vic approaches. Phil has something to show him. He has a beef against the Mexican gangs and wants to teach them a lesson. For some reason, Vic insists on driving. First stop is to the police station. They aren't there. Next stop, the hospital. None there, but there's one just down the block. Chase him down and let Phil kill him in a drive-by, just follow close and pull back when the other car starts in flames. Head to the Pay N' Spray and take Phil back home.
Reward: $200. Marty, Phil's wife beating brother-in-law is now open as a boss.
Boomshine Blowout (6/10 difficulty)
Phil is wasted again as his boomshine is about to be blasted to kingdom come. He needs Vic to help him rescue the booze before it explodes in the warehouse that's on fire. Not an easy task. You don't have much time to move the 4 crates and you are stuck with a slow moving forklift that does not have first person view and you don't even get directional views either, so getting stuck is easy. It is also difficult to really see the path and aiming for the back of the truck. Also, after you load each parcel, more of the ceiling caves in making your path longer to get to the remaining ones.
Reward: $250.
Truck Stop (4/10 difficulty)
Phil is talking with Jerry who is still a smug ass as Vic approaches wanting to kill him. Martinez gets on him for being such a hypocrite and how he has made it possible for him to have a better life. Now he has something for the both of them to do - intercept a truck and hide it. Drive to The Beachcomber Hotel to pick up some of Phil's friends. Drive to Little Havana and have your crew gun down the people around the truck. Get in front of the Truck to stop it and Phil will get in to drive it back to his place. You need to protect the truck which will have a damage meter and make sure it gets there in one piece. Some thugs will come after you and you need to keep them away from the truck. The men in your car will gun them down so just concentrate on driving safely. By the time you hit Vice Port, they will stop chasing you and you can safely escort Phil the rest of the way.
Reward: $300.
Shakedown (3/10 difficulty)
Marty is married to Phil Cassidy's sister, Louise. He is quite abusive towards her and not afraid to show it, Louise will defend it, but is really tired of taking it. Marty is an inbred, scum trailer trash with dreams of building a money making empire and wants to use Vic as his employee. Anyway, your job is to help Marty take control over the shop which is overrun by Mexican gang members and get the owner to agree to pay Marty protection money. Kill them in front of the store, in the store, damage some goods. The owner will cutscene to agree to the payments and you have passed.
Reward: $500.
Fear the Repo (4/10 difficulty)
Marty wants to assign Vic a job as a debt collector. People are late with payments and they have cars which are to be repossessed, so he says. Drive Marty to the lock up and then start to collect the cars. The first one is near the lot. Take it and drive to the lock up. Next one is currently being driven around Little Havana. Corner it and grab the car and drive to the lock up. If it gets banged up, go to Pay N' Spray. The last one is tricky because it is already loaded with merchandise and has a police officer nearby. When you get it, you will get 2 stars and will have heat on you as you take it to lock up. Use a map for the most direct route to the Pay N' Spray and be quick, but careful about driving there because you can lose the mission if you destroy all the merchandise in the back. The truck handles poorly and flips easily. By losing the stars, you can safely drive back at your leisure.
Reward: $500. You next get a message from Louise. She is now open as a boss and Phil has work available.
Waking Up The Neighbors (3/10 difficulty)
More problems with the Mexican gangs trying to wedge in on Marty's repo business. He needs Vic to send them a message via grenades. It will be so much easier to use the micro-smg if you are not good at throwing the grenades, but have both so your options are open. You have 9 and a half minutes to destroy all 3 vans. If you are using grenades, throw them as hard as possible in the direction of the van and the surrounding gang members to try to take them out at the same time. Or do a drive-by to blow it up and run over the gang members.
Reward: $500.
O, Brothel, Where Art Thou? (3/10 difficulty)
Marty wants to expand his business opportunities and open a brothel. The only problem is he needs a place to run it. Go to Stonewall J's in Little Havana to get the stubby shotgun Marty set aside for you. Buy extra weapons if you need them. Then run over to the Brothel in Little Haiti. There is a car outside the brother. Destroy the car to get their attention and kill all the gang members. Enter the building and kill everyone inside then destroy the bed. Marty can then buy it and open shop.
Reward: $700. Stonewall J's is now available for buying weapons. Also, certain businesses can be trashed to make the owner sell the place. You can then buy that business if you have enough cash.
Got Protection? (4/10 difficulty)
Now that Marty is running the brothel, his girls are being harassed by the Mexican gang members which is ruining his business. He needs Vic to teach them some manners. There are three girls to rescue in different locations. You need to get to them before their health runs out. Grab a 4-door vehicle so you can carry them after the rescue. Approach the first group on the north side of Little Haiti and kill them before they kill the girl. Next, go to the King Knuts in Little Haiti and do the same thing. The gangs will be slightly rougher. The last one is just to the southeast of the brothel. The gangs will be even rougher. Finish them off and head towards the brothel.
Reward: $500. That's the last of Marty.
Marked Men (5/10 difficulty)
While drunk, Phil called Jerry an asshole and said he did not trust him. He fears Jerry will get revenge on him. Martinez reassures both men that he is willing to work together with them, he just has something he wants them to check out. Hopefully you know how to drive fast. They get to Little Haiti's lock up and go for the truck which has the last of his boomshine in the back. Once you get in, suddenly Jerry's kids are ambushing them. Get out and kill them all. Get back in the truck and head towards the narrow alley. More of Jerry's kids are out to get you. Kill them and get back in and head towards Phil's place. More will be after you and Phil will be throwing moltov cocktails at them. Drive as quickly as possible to avoid the cars that will blow up. The difficulty lies in the fact your vehicle has many chances to blow up next to cars on fire that try to corner you. When you reach Phil's place, you complete the mission.
Reward: Nothing, but you have really made Jerry mad.
When Funday Comes (3/10 difficulty)
It seems Vic and Louise are kindered spirits, both with problems that seem beyond their control. To take their minds off their problems, they decide to have some fun with the quad-bikes in a race behind the trailer park. In this mission, get on the quad-bike and race around two laps and beat out the other 3 racers. The quad is a bit difficult to handle and the course is fine except when it is raining or when you hit that patch of grass wrong and spin out of control. Just keep a steady lead and don't floor it too hard where you will flip or end up caught where you don't want to be.
Reward: $500. Sunshine Autos is now open and the quad is available for $3000. You can also start to do the Tourismo races at Sunshine Autos.
Takin' Out The White-Trash (3/10 difficulty)
It's really over between Louise and Marty. She needs to collect her stuff at the trailer, but is fearful Marty may harm her. She asks Vic to take her there for protection. Bring along a shotgun or a micro-smg for protection as well as armor. There are 12 in the yard who warn them the next time Marty sees her he will turn her out. Vic calls them white trash and they don't take kindly to him. Kill them all. When Louise comes out with Vic's wallet, you need to take her safely back to her sister's place, but rednecks in pick up trucks are chasing and shooting at your car. Concentrate on the road and drive quickly and you might not see them until you are nearly at the place. If they are making it too hard on you, do a drive-by and get them out of the way quickly. Use the Pay N' Spray if you get in trouble.
Reward: $200. She is still having Marty problems.
D.I.V.O.R.C.E. (4/10 difficulty)
You go to Louise's sister's place (assuming this is probably also Phil's sister). Louise isn't there and you are informed that Marty has kidnapped her to turn her out. Vic goes to the trailer where some rednecks (the friendly welcoming committee) have a bone to pick with him. Use a shotgun or mini-smg to take the out and the chase begins. You have a choice to follow Marty and try to ram him to get out of the truck while rednecks are also pursuing you and you drive-by that nuisance OR drive straight to the brothel before he gets there and when Marty steps out of the truck, kill him. Louise is upset with you for killing her husband, but at least you know you won't ever see that bastard again.
Reward: Mission passed. The trailer trash outfit is now available. You have a new save location at the compound (it will be called Phil Compound in Vice City.)
To Victor, The Spoils (4/10 difficulty)
Now that you've killed Marty, you have left a poor, defenseless single mother who needs support and income for her baby. Seeing as you were the one to kill him, it is your job to secure their future and start the empire to do it. Empire building begins here and is essential for completion. For now, you will need a four-door car, plenty of ammo in a weapon of your choice, and armor. Take Louise to Sunshine Autos and recruit 2 men with the D-pad up button+ R1 (just like San Andreas). Get everyone in the car and head for the first location, the loan shark office next to the hotel by the airport. Louise will drop you guys off and head out for the next point. Being very careful not to kill your men, kill the guards and grab another 4-door vehicle where all of you can drive to the next area where the protection racket takes place (close to the brothel.) Louise is there waiting for you. Kill the guards standing outside, but don't kill your people in the process. Go inside and kill the guards. You have just acquired your first business for the empire. Pay attention to the scene which explains how to build the empire because you need it for completion of the game.
Reward: Aside from your first business acquisition, $1500. You get a message to pick up your brother at the airport. Louise is also still having problems.
Vice City Stories Continues
