Filip Novotny Reviewing a new version of a classic game is very difficult. On the one hand, you perceive various errors and outdated game procedures, on the other hand, you can easily be hit by a strong dose of nostalgia. There's nothing to be surprised about, because you suddenly have your favorite classic in your hands, so to speak.
Who does not know the Grand Theft Auto series. Perhaps everyone who is even remotely interested in gaming has tried at least one part of this series. And if, God forbid, he hasn't tried it, at least he's heard of it, since these titles are very controversial. Whether it's the classic top-down first two installments, the revolutionary third-person installment, the handheld episodes or the latest four, GTA has always been a hit with players and reviewers alike. The part with the subtitle Vice City turned out to be the best of all.
An incredible ten years have passed since its release, and Rockstar decided to make the wait for GTA V more pleasant with a new version for iOS and Android. So we are transported back to the eighties and sunny Vice City, where tough gangster Tommy Vercetti is waiting for us. He just got out of prison, in which he spent fifteen long years due to the mistakes of his "superiors". He's decided he's had enough of serving others and is about to take Vice City by storm.
Tommy's journey to take over the local underworld will of course be us and we will be helped by a number of really interesting characters. It was their variety and the missions assigned by them, together with a good script, that led to the great success and popularity of this part of the series and overshadowed GTA III, which by the way already saw its release on iOS devices.
In Vice City we will drive dozens of different cars, motorbikes, water boats, we will fly with a helicopter and a seaplane, we will drop bombs from a remote control plane. We will shoot with different weapons, from pistols to SMGs and assault rifles to rocket launchers. This variety sounds nice on paper, but how will these thoroughly complex actions be controlled on a multi-inch touch screen?
Compared to the already mentioned GTA III, not much has changed in terms of controls. On the left side we control the movement of the character with a joystick, on the right we find action buttons for shooting, jumping, etc. In the upper right corner we can change weapons, in the lower left the radio station. We can look around by swiping in the middle of the screen, but it is not exactly twice as easy and the camera returns to the original angle just as quickly. This is very annoying especially when trying to aim.
In terms of shooting, which is one of the things we'll be doing a lot, there are two different ways. Firstly, there is auto-aim on by default, which works simply by tapping the fire button and the game will focus on the nearest target. So there is no logical choice here and this mode is therefore more practical for larger firefights where we can quickly get rid of several enemies in a row.
Another option is to tap the aim button, which switches the camera to a first-person view. The crosshairs will appear and we can shoot the selected targets more precisely. By default, the game will help us a little and automatically aim at the enemy's head when approaching. However, there is a minor catch - this mode is only available for heavy weapons such as the M4 or Ruger. On the other hand, there is never a shortage of ammunition for these weapons, so we can use them practically all the time.
We also have two options when it comes to driving cars. Either we keep the original setup where we have the direction buttons on the left side of the screen and the brake and gas on the right. In this mode, the steering is fast, but not very precise. The second option replaces the two left buttons with a joystick, which is more accurate but requires a bit of patience to master.
As a result, Vice City is controlled quite pleasantly on the touch screen, except for occasional camera hiccups and aiming problems. Even on an iPhone, the controls are digestible, but of course the larger iPad display will provide better comfort. In general, the iPad mini worked best for us for gaming.
With the iPhone and large iPad, on the other hand, we appreciate the graphics, which really suit the retina. Given the age of the game, we can't expect tens of thousands of polygons like Infinity Blade, but I dare say that veterans of the PC version will be surprised. The graphics of the annual Vice City are based on the modified console edition, which includes, for example, completely redesigned models of cars, characters' hands, etc. Another nice news is the improvement of saving positions. First, there's autosave, which saves all of your gameplay outside of missions. There is also the possibility to save to iCloud, in addition to several classic positions for savs, there are also two cloud ones. We can easily switch between, for example, an iPhone and an iPad.
Unfortunately, despite all these improvements, Vice City for iOS still has a few bugs. There are still dead spots that were caused by the small space for the audio track on the CD. What's even sadder is that Rockstar hasn't fixed the notorious bugs that have left many a player cursing Vice City. Example: Tommy is standing on the road, a car is approaching him from a distance. He looks behind him for a second, then turns back. The car is suddenly gone. The bus, five other cars and a bunch of pedestrians disappeared with him. Unpleasantly. In addition to these problems, some users also complain about occasional crashes. This solves the autosave to some extent, but we have bad luck during the missions.
Although we have mentioned a few technical caveats here, Vice City is nevertheless an extraordinary game that has not lost its charm even after ten years. A trip to the 1980s, where we will meet painted dudes in tight suits, hairy metalheads, corrupt politicians, bikers and porn stars, in short, is something that almost everyone would like to do. With the sounds of ageless 80's classics in the form of several radio stations, amazingly incorrect humor and parody of Western society await us, but above all, hours of great fun with a dose of irrepressible nostalgia. Failure to remove a few annoying bugs will freeze the game, but it cannot spoil the enjoyment of the game.
[app url=”https://itunes.apple.com/cz/app/grand-theft-auto-vice-city/id578448682?mt=8″]
how is it playable on iphone?
Yes, it plays fine on my 4S. But thanks to the small screen, one needs to be calm to be able to look at it closely. It's not for the shaking bus. But it will be better at five.
On 4S, great satisfaction, sometimes overwhelming, the main storyline (approx. 60%) finished during the long Christmas evenings. The layout of the controls can even be adjusted.
I would just like to point out a small mistake - the word nostalgia should probably be used instead of melancholy. In this usage the original word makes no sense. :-) Otherwise, I agree with the article. Compared to GTA 3, it's much more playable thanks to the autoaim.
So I played GTA 3 somehow better thanks to the aiming that the automatic system spoils, I want to choose who I hit myself.
Hi, I'm playing on an iPad 3. I don't mind, but one thing really bothers me... and that's the characters' walking. People walk there in a completely unnatural and really strange way - almost as if their legs should fall off in a moment... it's really strange :D.
Did you even play it 10 years ago? :D
God... Philip, what kind of new word do you make up doze? Didn't you mean you have three? Go learn Czech :)
Hold + handle = beautiful new patvar :)
We'll fix it, thanks.