I have incredibly fond memories of GTA. I first saw an ad for the original GTA in a gaming magazine years ago and I tried forever to find a copy, finally snagging one months down the line. I remember being blown away by the improved lighting and explosions featured in GTA 2 and then, of course, GTA III hit and everything changed. I picked up Vice City at launch, after spending over a year in Liberty City, and though I still loved the game, the city wasn't quite as gripping as I had hoped it would be. After a reunion with Liberty City thanks to the PS2 release of Liberty City Stories, I was content with the original trilogy. Liberty City was a classic, San Andreas was massive and a huge achievement in videogame cityscapes, and Vice City was... well, it was charming and fit the Eighties theme brilliantly, but it just didn't hold me like the other two.

Now that I've made a return trip to the city, courtesy of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, I can honestly say that my feelings have changed a lot, but not for the better. This nearly straight port of the PSP title really shows the GTA engine's age in a very negative way, even for a budget price. Before I get into that, though, let's start off at the beginning...

It's 1984, two years before the events of the original Vice City. You take control of Vic Vance, brother of the infamous Lance Vance, right as he is thrown out of the military thanks to a corrupt sergeant. With a strong moral against drugs, Vic Vance is drawn into a very corrupted world as he and his brother set out to take over the city. Not a lot is different from other GTA titles, but fans will appreciate all the appearances of past characters and how it all ties in with the original Vice City; the story has a couple of twists to keep things interesting, but it's far from epic.

For the most part Vice City Stories plays out just like you'd expect by now. You take control of Vic and are allowed free reign over Vice City (initially only one half of the island is accessible, the other being restricted due to an incoming hurricane). You can roam the city at will, accepting missions from non-playable characters or doing side activities for extra cash. Any car is available to steal and your character has the ability to jump, swim (a welcome addition that was missing from the original Vice City), fly, fistfight, grapple and use a variety of firearms. If you've played GTA before then you'll find the gameplay identical to previous titles, even the original GTA III. While it was passable - indeed, revolutionary - back then, it has aged incredibly poorly over the years and now comes off as exceptionally sloppy.

With the release of recent GTA-inspired titles like Saints Row and Crackdown, the age of the game engine that powers the GTA spin-offs is really starting to show. The targeting system is still very inaccurate and cumbersome, almost useless at times thanks to its tendency to target the wrong enemies and the free aim mode is fairly poor, while the hand to hand combat is also very ropey and little more than a button mashing brawl. New is the ability to grapple enemies, either standing or on the ground, and beat them to a pulp or break their neck. However, after playing The Godfather and using its excellent brawling controls, Vice City Stories' fighting engine is simply boring and outdated by comparison.

The cut scenes are well scripted and acted, but they're strictly rendered with the in-game engine and consequently don't look particularly good. They're blocky and by today's standards actually look downright embarrassing on the PS2. Very little in the way of graphical improvement has been made, outside of extra trail effects and blurring, as well as a slightly improved draw distance, but if you've been playing on a 360 lately then you're going to have a very difficult time looking at Vice City Stories.

Luckily the sound is a lot better, featuring all of the celebrity voices from the original Vice City returning to reprise their roles (for those characters that return at least), as well as some cameos from a couple of unexpected stars. All of the voice work is great and the radio work doesn't even need to be praised at this point; it's a given that it'll be brilliant. Combining classic Eighties pop songs, hip hop beginnings and rock hits, the music once again sets the tone for the time period beautifully and it includes the infamous radio commercials and talk shows the series has become famous for. Look out for a hysterical role from Lazlow as the lowly rock station intern who is "the co-host, almost!"

Though the graphics haven't been upgraded, the game itself has had a few extra additions thrown in from the PSP version, including new stunt ramps, rampages and extra Easter eggs, which marks the first time a GTA port has featured new gameplay modifications. If you haven't played the PSP installment then there are quite a few new aspects that have been included to make up for the lack of redesign to the game engine and structure.

The side missions have been significantly upgraded, now including an exclusive Beach Patrol mode where you run down bikers on the sandy beaches with your jeep, or rescue drowning citizens from the ocean waters. Beyond the side missions there's a new Empire Building feature that combines the Property Takeovers introduced in Vice City and Gang Wars introduced in San Andreas. You can buy properties and start your own business, from which you can select Protection, Loan Shark, Prostitution, Drugs, Smuggling and Robbery. Businesses can be upgraded and perform better or worse based their location, and you can even purchase security to protect the building from rival gangs attempting a takeover. It's a nice feature and easily the best new addition to the franchise, something the game drastically needs considering that most of the features introduced in San Andreas aren't present. Like Liberty City Stories, VCS does not feature the character upgrades or options present in San Andreas, nor does it include weapon or skill upgrades; the most you can do is change your appearance.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories is a thoughtful offering from Rockstar Games for those people who don't own a PSP but were dying to revisit what is for many their favorite setting in the GTA series. The addition of some new features is welcome, but they can't hide the fact that the old gameplay is getting very tired now and so I only recommend this for die-hard GTA fans who can't deal with missing out on a single title in the series. As hard as it is for me to admit it, at this point GTA has been overtaken by better free-roaming action games - however, I have no doubt that these Stories spin-offs are no more than stopgap solutions before Rockstar retake their rightful place on the throne with what promises to be the groundbreaking and unmatched Grand Theft Auto IV. Now that the GTA III series has come to a close, we can still look back and enjoy it for what it was, but it's difficult to enjoy it as much as we once did, given the massive leaps over the past two years of the genre that Rockstar originated.

Reviewed by Christopher Martin for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).