GTA Vice City tips and tricks

GTA Vice City drops Tommy Vercetti into a neon city with no money, no friends and very little explanation. These tips come from IGN’s wiki, GameSpot’s walkthrough, GamesRadar and Rockstar’s own game manual. Small details can differ between the original game and later releases. For cheat codes, see our cheats page; this guide does not use them.

The basics

Save at safehouses

You save the game at a safehouse. Tommy starts with the Ocean View Hotel in Ocean Beach, which IGN says you never need to buy. More safehouses go on sale as you play, and GameSpot notes that you can save at any property you own, businesses included. Our money guide lists every price.

Worth buying early, according to IGN and GameSpot:

• El Swanko Casa in Vice Point, $8,000. A pool, a garage and a good location. IGN says buy it first.
• Hyman Condo in Downtown, $14,000. Garages and a helicopter on the roof, next to Hyman Memorial Stadium. IGN calls it the best safehouse in the game.

Garages keep the cars you park in them. GameSpot warns not to save with a garage door left open, or the car can vanish.

Check the Briefs and Stats screens

Missed a line of dialogue or forgot the next step? IGN points to the Briefs screen in the pause menu, which holds your recent messages. The Stats screen tracks almost everything, from store robberies to completion.

Stay out of deep water

Tommy cannot swim. IGN warns that falling into deep water kills him almost instantly, so take care near docks and when jumping from boats.

The second island opens later

At the start, IGN explains, the bridges to the west island are closed by a hurricane warning. Focus on the east island first: Ocean Beach, Washington Beach and Vice Point.

Health and armor

• Pickups. IGN describes four kinds of floating pickup: hearts refill your health, body armor adds a second bar that soaks up damage first, adrenaline pills slow time and make Tommy stronger, and bribe stars lower your wanted level by one star.
• Buy armor. Every Ammu-Nation sells body armor for $200, according to IGN. Wear it before any big mission.
• Raise your maximum health and armor. IGN and GameSpot agree on two upgrades: finish level 10 of the Pizza Boy missions on a Pizza Boy scooter for 150 health, and level 12 of Vigilante in a police vehicle for 150 armor. GamesRadar suggests doing both before the rampages.
• Other permanent perks. Paramedic level 12 gives infinite sprint, Firefighter level 12 makes Tommy fireproof, and 100 taxi fares give every taxi a boost jump, according to IGN and GameSpot.
• Hidden packages. Every 10 packages adds a free pickup at your safehouses, starting with body armor at 10. See our hidden packages guide.

Wasted or busted

IGN says that if Tommy dies or is arrested, he wakes up at a hospital or police station, fails the current mission and loses his weapons and some cash. The manual lists hospitals in Downtown, Vice Point, Ocean Beach and Little Havana.

Wanted levels

IGN’s breakdown of the six stars:

Stars	Who comes after you
1	Nearby cops, on foot or in a car, without much firepower
2	More aggressive police who try to box your car in
3	Undercover cops in fast Cheetahs and simple roadblocks
4	Tire strips, SWAT vans and Hunter helicopters
5	The FBI in black SUVs
6	The army, with tanks such as the Rhino

What raises it, according to IGN: stealing cars in front of the police, running people over, shooting, wrecking cars (police cars especially) and entering restricted areas such as a police station, which costs at least two stars.

How to lose the police

1. One star: stay out of sight for a while and it fades.
2. Change clothes: IGN says changing outfits at a safehouse or a clothes shop clears up to two stars.
3. Bribes: each star icon you walk over removes one star. IGN suggests learning where they are.
4. Pay ‘n’ Spray: drive in for a respray. IGN says it costs $100, and names one by the Starfish Island bridge in Little Havana and one at the southern tip of Ocean Beach. Stay out of trouble while the stars still flash, or they come straight back.
5. Finish the mission: IGN notes that completing a mission clears any wanted level, even six stars.

Weapons and shops

Ammu-Nation

IGN lists three Ammu-Nation stores, each with different stock:

Store	Highlights (IGN)
Ocean Beach	Colt 45 $100, Ingram Mac 10 $300, shotgun $500, Ruger $1,000
Vice Point, in North Point Mall	Uzi $400, stubby shotgun $600, sniper rifle $1,500, grenades $300
Downtown	Colt Python $2,000, MP5 $3,000, SPAS shotgun $4,000, M4 $5,000, PSG-1 $6,000

The Downtown store also has a rifle range. IGN and GameSpot say a score of 45 or more there unlocks fast reload, and it counts toward 100% completion.

Hardware stores

Tooled Up in North Point Mall, Screw This in Little Havana and Bunch of Tools in Washington Beach sell melee weapons, from a $10 screwdriver to a $300 katana and a $500 chainsaw, according to IGN.

Phil’s Place

After Phil Cassidy’s two missions, Gun Runner and Boomshine Saigon, his yard in Little Haiti sells heavy weapons. IGN and GameSpot list remote grenades for $1,000, a rocket launcher and an M60 for $8,000 each and a minigun for $10,000.

One weapon per slot

Rockstar’s manual explains that Tommy carries one weapon of each type: one melee weapon, one handgun and so on. Picking up a new weapon of the same type replaces the old one, and the ammo carries over.

Driving tips

From IGN’s vehicle basics:

• Drive under control rather than flat out. Spinning out costs more time than braking.
• Use the handbrake to slide through corners and keep your speed.
• Steal cars from the front: stand in front of a stopped car and Tommy walks round to the driver’s door.
• On motorbikes you can pull wheelies and stoppies for cash bonuses, and fire forward with a submachine gun.

Intermediate tips

• Assets come after Shakedown. Once you finish Shakedown, businesses go on sale and start paying daily. See the money guide.
• Hold off on the gang wars. IGN warns that after the Cuban and Haitian missions, Haitians attack you on sight, so it suggests leaving Umberto Robina and Auntie Poulet until late.
• Follow missions on the map. For chase missions such as The Chase, IGN’s tip is to keep an eye on the target’s marker and take a parallel road rather than tailing it the whole way.
• Robberies need an exit plan. IGN advises scouting a nearby clothes shop or bribe before you rob a store.
• Cheats affect your stats. GameSpot warns that using cheats lowers your criminal rating in the Stats screen and advises never saving with a cheat active.
• Look around. Vice City is packed with secrets. See our easter eggs guide.

Updated October 27, 2026