
GTA Vice City Stories players can also participate in various optional side missions.

Players can now bribe police officers and hospital staff when they are Wasted or Busted to lower their wanted level and retain weapons that would otherwise be lost, respectively. The traditional Wanted mechanic when committing crimes also received some changes. Players can now grapple, throw, and stand on prone enemies. The biggest change to hand-to-hand combat is the proximity system.

Enemies that threaten or attack the player are targeted via walkers. The aiming mechanism is optimized for "Smart Aim". On that note, GTA Vice City Stories revamped the combat system. In combat encounters, the player can use weapons and basic melee combat. Players can also steal and drive different vehicles such as cars, boats, planes, helicopters, and motorcycles. The game allows the player to roam a vast open environment, whether on foot, by walking, running, swimming, and jumping. The core game consists of third-person shooting mechanics and driving game elements. GTA Vice City Stories is structured like any other release in the Grand Theft Auto series, both with the storyline and with the game controls. The story revolves around Vic's attempts to build a criminal empire alongside his brother Lance while clashing with rival gangsters, drug lords and other foes. These include Phil (Gary Busey), Ricardo Diaz (Luis Guzman), Lance Vance (Philip Michael Thomas), and Umberto Robina ( Danny Trejo). In addition, Vice City Stories sees many of the characters and voice actors from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City reprising their roles. Vance and his brother Lance Vance previously appeared in GTA Vice City as minor characters. This time, you take the role of Victor Vance as the protagonist. The game's setting has several areas that differ from the 1986 version of Vice City, such as buildings and establishments that are still under construction. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories takes place two years before the events of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. GTA Vice City Stories is part of the 3D universe canon of the Grand Theft Auto series. This is the fifth Grand Theft Auto game to come to handheld consoles.

Due to its success, it was later released on the PlayStation 2 console. GTA Vice City Stories was a PlayStation Portable exclusive game. Often shortened to GTA Vice City Stories, it was released for the Sony PSP in October 2006. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories is an action-adventure driving and urban crime themed game co-developed by Rockstar Leeds and Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games.
