Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Online Strategy Guide
The Eighties brought us many things: hot pink, legwarmers, cheesy synth pop, big hair and crime. Drug crime. Lots and lots of drug crime. Of course, we don't mind. All the coke lords and shootouts and vendettas make for a lot of quality entertainment. Without 80's crime we wouldn't have had Miami Vice, Scarface, Tango & Cash , and now... Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
Set firmly in the Reagan Era, Vice City is a continuation of everything you learned from the first game. If you think that by now you're a smooth criminal, think again. Vice City packs a lot of new stuff into the experience: new missions, new weapons, new music, new cars, tons of secret jumps and hidden packages, and, of course, lots and lots of cops to avoid.
Our guide will help you in all aspects of your conquest. We've got a detailed walkthrough with multiple solutions to each mission, a full secrets section, locations of all 100 Hidden Packages and more.
The latest guides for the hottest games are available for IGN Insider subscribers. If you're not an Insider, you'll still want to check out IGN Guides, as we feature plenty of free and sponsored guides as well.
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Cheat List
See the keyboard? Type the cheats (displayed in CAPs) to get the effect. Note that Cap Sense does not apply to the cheats!
THUGSTOOLS ~ Weapon set #1
PROFESSIONALTOOLS ~ Weapon set #2
NUTTERTOOLS ~ Weapon set #3
ASPIRINE ~ Restore health
PRECIOUSPROTECTION ~ Gain/restore armor
ICANTTAKEITANYMORE ~ Kill self
YOUWONTTAKEMEALIVE ~ Increase Wanted Level
LEAVEMEALONE ~ Decrease Wanted Level
FANNYMAGNET ~ Female actors follow player
CERTAINDEATH ~ Tommy smokes a cigarette
DEEPFRIEDMARSBARS ~ Player model changed to fat
PROGRAMMER ~ Player model changed to skinny
STILLLIKEDRESSINGUP ~ Player model changed randomly
CHEATSHAVEBEENCRACKED ~ Player model is Ricardo Diaz
LOOKLIKELANCE ~ Player model is Lance Vance
MYSONISALAWYER ~ Player model is Ken Rosenberg
LOOKLIKEHILARY ~ Player model is Hilary King
ROCKANDROLLMAN ~ Player model is Love Fist rocker #1
WELOVEOURDICK ~ Player model is Love Fist rocker #2
ONEARMEDBANDIT ~ Player model is Phil Cassidy
IDONTHAVETHEMONEYSONNY ~ Player model is Sonny Forelli
FOXYLITTLETHING ~ Player model is Mercedes
PANZER ~ Spawns a Rhino Tank
TRAVELINSTYLE ~ Spawns a Bloodring Banger
GETTHEREQUICKLY ~ Spawns a Bloodring Banger (alternate)
GETTHEREFAST ~ Spawns a Sabre Turbo
GETTHEREVERYFASTINDEED ~ Spawns a Hotring Racer
GETTHEREAMAZINGLYFAST ~ Spawns a Hotring Racer (alternate)
THELASTRIDE ~ Spawns a Romero's Hearse
ROCKANDROLLCAR ~ Spawns a Love Fist Stretch/Limo
RUBBISHCAR ~ Spawns a Trashmaster
BETTERTHANWALKING ~ Spawns a Golf Caddie
BIGBANG ~ Explodes nearby cars
MIAMITRAFFIC ~ Aggressive AI driving on
AHAIRDRESSERSCAR ~ All cars become pink
IWANTITPAINTEDBLACK ~ All cars become black
COMEFLYWITHME ~ Flying cars cheat
GRIPISEVERYTHING ~ Vehicle handling improved
GREENLIGHT ~ All traffic signals green
SEAWAYS ~ Cars hover over water
WHEELSAREALLINEED ~ Only car wheels visible
LOADSOFLITTLETHINGS ~ Some cars have big wheels
HOPINGIRL ~ Actors get into player's current car
ALOVELYDAY ~ Weather sunny
APLEASANTDAY ~ Weather overcast
ABITDRIEG ~ Weather very overcast
CANTSEEATHING ~ Weather foggy
CATSANDDOGS ~ Weather stormy
LIFEISPASSINGMEBY ~ Time compression (speeds up game time)
ONSPEED ~ Time compression (alternate)
BOOOOOORING ~ Time expansion
CHASESTAT ~ Shows Media Level
FIGHTFIGHTFIGHT ~ Actors all attack (riot cheat)
NOBODYLIKESME ~ Actors attack player
CHICKSWITHGUNS ~ Female actors armed
OURGODGIVENRIGHTTOBEARARMS ~ All actors armed
CHASESTAT ~ Show media level (when 2+ stars):
Submitted by Gitaroo-Man, Clerric
Hint: Reduced Felony
If you want to kill cops without receiving a load of wanted stars, use the main blade of a helicopter and angle it so that the blade hits them. You accrue less "wanted points" this way.
Submitted by Farrar
Hint: Instant Health Power-Up
This trick worked in GTA III as well. Drive up next to a hooker and wait. If you're driving a swank enough car, she'll start talking to you. Eventually, she'll get into the car. At this point, drive to a quiet spot and let the magic happen. The car will start rocking, and your "health" will grow from 100 to 125. Your pocketbook will take a hit though. This health-up only works until the next time you die.
Submitted by Dave Z
Hint: Porno Flyers
After you complete the mission that dumps porn flyers all over the city, the flyers will continue to blow around town as long as you're playing the game.
Hint: Free Money From Parking Meters
Drive over parking meters to empty cash into the streets. It's free money!
Submitted by wnagstaklown
Easter Egg: He Sleeps With the Fishes
Get a boat... and go between The "Leaf Links" Golf club and the third island. GO up to the rock and stop your boat get the sniper rifle in the cheat and look down on the rocks you will see a man in boxers with concrete on his feet.
Submitted by sscoolieo
Hint: Enter Golf Course Without Losing Your Weapons
Here is a way to enter the golf course without having your weapons get confiscated. First, take the Comet nearby and drive it next to the fence. Get out and jump onto the car. Jump onto the fence, and then jump onto the second fence at a diagonal angle and drop down past it. You will make it into the golf course with all your weapons. This trick can be useful for the "Four Iron" mission.
Submitted by Jason Alder
Hint: Increase the Tank's Speed
Turn the tank's turrent around so it faces backwards. Now keep firing while accelerating and you will go a lot faster.
Submitted by Jason Alder
Hint: Buy Companies Wisely
An advantage of buying expensive companies rather than smaller ones first is you can get more money in return. For example, if you buy the Print Works for $70,000, you can get $8,000 dollars a day to make buying the other companies easier. Don't forget that you have to complete a certain mission in the Vercitti Missions before you can purchase companies, and you also need to finish the missions related to those companies.
Submitted by Jason Alder
Hint: Beach Ball
Go to Starfish island. When heading west, go into the first house on the right. In the empty pool there is a beach ball. When you run into it, it will bounce. Bounce it on your head and numbers will appear. (The trick is to always be in the shadow of the ball.)
Submitted by CrimsonPredator
Hint: Scarface Easter Egg
There's a Scarface easter egg in the form of a bloody bathroom and a chainsaw weapon.
Go to the Pay N' Spray at Ocean beach, then go south and take the first left. On your left, you'll see a two story apartment with two sets of stairs on the second floor.
Head up the stairs to the right and you'll see a black doorway. Check out the bathroom in apartment 3c and compare it to the movie.
Submitted by Demion
Hint: "Easter Egg" Easter Egg
Head to the 8-10 VCN Building (the news building) on the west island of Vice City. The news building is by the northern bridge entrance on the west island. You can enter the door of the news building and head up to the roof.
Along with the news chopper, there's an easter egg you can get to. There's another buiding close by, but on an angle with the window closest to the edge of the heliport. Make a sprinting jump through the window and you should see an empty room with an easter egg in the middle.
Submitted by Demion
Hint: See the Village People
Go into the Malibu Club and take a gander at the stage. There, you'll find a reasonable facsimile of the Village People.
Hint: Shoot the Moon
The moon changes size when shot at with the Sniper Rifle, just like in GTA 3.
Submitted by aruda3
Hint: Bullet Proof Cars
Admiral. Also fire-proof, explosion-proof, and collision-proof. Activate the Guardian Angels mission (from Colonel Cortez), and kill the Haitian gang members. The Admiral is the white car Diaz drives in the cut-scene. Deliberately fail the mission by killing Diaz, Lance, or letting the Haitian biker escape with Diaz's money.
Once the mission fails, the Admiral's doors will be unlocked and you can drive it back to the garage of your choice. Naturally, you will need to purchase property that has a garage first.
Submitted by Jared and Joey
Easter Egg: Find the Easter Egg
Leap off the corner of the VCTV building toward the nearest building to find a hidden room that contains a secret easter egg.
Hint: Rob the Bank
After you've completed the Malibu mission "The Job", you can rob El Banco Corrupto Grande for some easy money. Walk in and turn right up the stairs. This will earn you a four star wanted level. Walk into the manager's office to get 1/3 of the cash. The rest is in the room with the elevator, on the right side. Then jump off the balcony and run out. To shake the cops, you can turn left to the nearby Pay N' Spray. It's not much, but it's easy cash.
Submitted by tip2may
Hint: Ammo Trick
If you pick up the regular shotgun at your hidout (from starfish island) and then go out and find the spas or benelli shotgun out in the city, your 50 shells from the regular shotgun will be transfered to the new upgraded gun you picked up. If you were to pick up the upgraded shotgun without doing this you would only recieve 20 or so shells but this way you get roughly 70. This trick works with other guns also that share simular bullets.
Submitted by buzzkillah_3d
Hint: Dial the Numbers
Write down the phone numbers you hear on the radio commercials in the game. They all work! Here's a list:
1-866-PILLAGE
1-866-9-BURY ME
1-866-9-SAVE ME
1-866-9-SHADEE
1-866-434-SELF