5 times GTA Vice City proved Rockstar’s passion and brilliance for the series

There are many instances where Rockstar's creativity has helped GTA Vice City shine beyond expectations. Most Grand Theft Auto fans should already be familiar with the game's legacy and how it was critically acclaimed when it first came out.

While some aspects haven't aged gracefully since then, there are still instances where Rockstar Games has implemented some brilliantly creative features for GTA Vice City. This short listicle will highlight some examples of passion that turned the game into a masterpiece some fans know and love today.

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Five instances where Rockstar's efforts in GTA Vice City made the game so legendary

1) Legendary soundtrack

Emotion 98.3 was one of several amazing radio stations in this game (Image via Rockstar Games)

Interestingly, one aspect that has aged the best from GTA Vice City was its 80s-inspired soundtrack. It is vital to mention that the early Grand Theft Auto games often used original music composed by somebody working for Rockstar (then known as DMA Design).

Thus, having several licensed songs from legendary bands was practically unheard of in a video game. Even the fake 80s music by Love Fist was pretty solid. Rockstar Games clearly put a ton of effort into the game's audio department, and its success still shows several decades later.

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2) Innovative new features

Buying safehouses wasn't really a thing in this series until this game was released (Image via Rockstar Games)

Many video game series often tread on the same ground without changing much from one title to another. However, GTA Vice City was a clear example of a sequel introducing many new things for the better. Examples include:

• A voiced protagonist
• Motorcycles
• Purchasable safehouses and assets
• Robberies
• An in-game map
• The ability to bail out of moving vehicles
• Eating food to heal
• Actual rewards for 100% completion

Several of these changes drastically changed how the game felt compared to its predecessors. Most of these features have also become staples for the rest of the series.

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3) Creative game mechanics

Keepie-Uppy Beach Ball is an excellent example of a creative feature (Image via Rockstar Games)

Several one-off features appear in GTA Vice City but are largely absent from the rest of the series. Here are some examples:

• Keepie-Uppy Beach Ball
• Bus driving minigame
• Good Citizen Bonus

None of these features are instrumental to the game's core, yet they offer extra content for players. Rockstar Games didn't need to implement them. The fact that it did is pretty impressive, especially since it made the game feel different from the rest of the series.

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4) Iconic Easter eggs

Whether it's a literal chocolate Easter egg or a questionable pattern of lights on a building, it's safe to say GTA Vice City has some really good secrets. Other notable examples include the following:

• Apartment 3C
• Reagan and Gorbachev billboard
• Using a Sniper Rifle to change the moon's size
• Various cheeky references to other games, most notably in the Autocide mission

The Grand Theft Auto series has since become well-known for its iconic Easter eggs. There weren't as many secrets in the previous games in the franchise, especially on the level of notoriety as GTA Vice City.

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5) Another interesting 3D world to explore

Many locations are still memorable for some players (Image via Rockstar Games)

Grand Theft Auto III was a legendary open-world game. There were a ton of expectations that GTA Vice City would be able to follow suit. As players should know by now, this game had yet another iconic 3D open world to explore.

Vice City was much more vibrant than Liberty City. Going through the former location felt radically different than the latter for several reasons:

• Much brighter and more vibrant art direction
• The buildings weren't as large by comparison
• Completely different layout coupled with new features

Rockstar Games has obviously pioneered legendary 3D open-world games since the title.

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Note: Some aspects of this article are subjective.