GTA Vice City speedrun guide
GTA Vice City speedrun is still a very popular sport among gamers despite the game being over two decades old. Rockstar Games released the popular title in 2002, and it takes a regular player around five hours to complete(considering you play non-stop). However, speedrunners are built differently and they can finish a game in record time. The speedrun world record for Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (as per speedrun.com) is only 8 minutes and 11 seconds. It was set by a player named PeeBee on October 16, 2021.
Since Vice City is a considerably long game with various main missions and side activities, writing speedrun techniques for every mission is practically impossible. Therefore, this GTA Vice City speedrun guide will discuss some tips and tricks that are used by speedrunners globally and how Vice City players can use them to complete the game as soon as possible.
Note: Some parts of this GTA Vice City speedrun guide are subjective and only reflect the writer’s opinions. The techniques are subject to change if players discover new methods.
GTA Vice City speedrun guide: Understanding the basics
Since the 2002 title is very small compared to modern video games, completing a GTA Vice City speedrun should not take long. However, it goes without saying that speedrunning a game is not a cakewalk and certainly not for first-time players. You will have to have a basic understanding of the gameplay and missions before you start your GTA Vice City speedrun journey.
Here are some parameters that Grand Theft Auto fans should know regarding speedrunning GTA Vice City:
- Complete the entire game first.
- Skip the cutscenes.
- Use fast vehicles.
- Plan a route.
- Use bugs and glitches to skip missions.
Using these tricks efficiently will help you complete your GTA Vice City speedrun at your personal best times. The guide will briefly elaborate on these parameters below.
Why completing the entire game is necessary for GTA Vice City speedrun
Vice City was one of the most influential games that helped shape the Grand Theft Auto series in its early stages. It was the second 3D Universe title after the success of Grand Theft Auto 3, and Rockstar Games introduced various new changes to it. Therefore, whether you are a new player or an experienced one, you should play the game thoroughly and complete it 100% before starting GTA Vice City speedrun.
The following are the 59 missions that players must do to achieve 100% completion of the game:
- In The Beginning… (Cutscene)
- An Old Friend
- The Party
- Back Alley Brawl
- Jury Fury
- Riot
- Treacherous Swine
- Mall Shootout
- Guardian Angels
- Four Iron
- Demolition Man
- The Chase
- Phnom Penh '86
- Sir, Yes Sir!
- Two Bit Hit
- The Fastest Boat
- Supply & Demand
- Death Row
- All Hands On Deck!
- Rub Out
- Shakedown
- Bar Brawl
- Cop Land
- Love Juice
- Psycho Killer
- Alloy Wheels of Steel
- Messing with the Man
- Hog Tied
- Publicity Tour
- Stunt Boat Challenge
- Cannon Fodder
- Naval Engagement
- Juju Scramble
- Bombs Away!
- Dirty Lickin's
- Trojan Voodoo
- Road Kill
- Waste the Wife
- Autocide
- Check Out at the Check In
- Loose Ends
- No Escape
- The Shootist
- The Driver
- The Job
- Gun Runner
- Boomshine Saigon
- V.I.P.
- Friendly Rivalry
- Cabmageddon
- Checkpoint Charlie
- Distribution
- Recruitment Drive
- Dildo Dodo
- Matha’s Mug Shop
- G-Spotlight
- Spilling the Beans
- Hit the Courier
- Cap the Collector
- Keep Your Friends Close…
In addition to these, you can also do the following:
Vehicles Sub-Missions:
- Firefighter
- Paramedic
- Pizza Boy
- Taxi Driver
- Vigilante
Off-Road Challenges:
- Cone Crazy
- PCJ Playground
- Test Track
- Trial by Dirt
Side Missions and Activities:
- Ammu-Nation Shooting Range
- Chopper Checkpoints
- Hyman Memorial Stadium Events
- Rampages
- RC Top Fun Missions
- Store Robberies
- Sunshine Autos Import Garage
- Unique Stunt Jumps
- Unique Stunt Jumps
Completing all these should give you a proper idea of the game, making you ready for the GTA Vice City Speedrun.
Why skipping cutscenes is necessary for GTA Vice City speedrun
Rockstar Games includes cutscenes in its games to elaborate the narrative and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is no different. The very first mission (In The Beginning…) is a cutscene itself that introduces us to the protagonist Thomas “Tommy” Vercetti, Sonny Forelli, Ken Rosenberg, Victor Vance, and various other side characters.
However, since the goal of speedrunning is to complete the story as soon as possible, GTA Vice City speedrunners must skip all cutscenes at the earliest possible. These scenes take a chunk of time and sometimes, it can run over a minute. Each second is precious in a speedrun and therefore, you should skip all the cutscenes.
Rockstar Games introduced some of the most iconic Vice City moments through cutscenes. But, during speedrun, you have to avoid all of them. If you love watching cutscenes, then you should enjoy them while normally completing the game to 100%.
Why using fast vehicles is necessary for GTA Vice City speedrun
It goes without saying that using fast vehicles will help you reach one point to another sooner, and it is the bread and butter of speedrunning a game. The map of Grand Theft Auto Vice City spawns 102 vehicles at various locations. However, since there was no concept of private vehicles and requesting vehicles through the mechanic back then, you will have to steal every vehicle from the streets.
Here is a list of some of the fastest vehicles that GTA Vice City speedrun players can look for:
- Infernus - 149.13 mph or 240.00 km/h
- VCPD Cheetah - 142.92 mph or 230.00 km/h
- Cheetah - 142.92 mph or 230.00 km/h
- Hotring Racer - 136.70 mph or 220.00 km/h
- VCN Maverick - 124.27 mph or 200.00 km/h
- Stinger - 124.27 mph or 200.00 km/h
- Comet - 124.27 mph or 200.00 km/h
- Banshee - 124.27 mph or 200.00 km/h
- Sanchez - 118.06 mph or 190.00 km/h
- PCJ 600 - 118.06 mph or 190.00 km/h
- Freeway - 118.06 mph or 190.00 km/h
Infernus, Cheetah, Banshee, and PCJ 600 are some of the most popular vehicles used by the GTA Vice City speedrun community. You can easily find these vehicles roaming in the streets. However, you must be near an urban area for them to spawn.
Moreover, you can also refer to the following locations to find the cars spawning naturally:
Infernus:
- In front of the Diaz's Mansion or Vercetti Estate.
- Inside the North Point Mall.
Cheetah:
- Near Juan García Cortez’s yacht.
- North side of the Diaz's Mansion or Vercetti Estate.
Banshee:
- Starfish Island.
- Near the Pay 'n' Spray shop in Washington Beach.
PCJ 600:
- Near the Standing Vice Point building.
- Howlin' Petes Biker Emporium.
- Near the Pay 'n' Spray shop in Washington Beach.
The GTA Vice City speedrun guide advises players to remember these locations so that they can grab the nearest fastest vehicle whenever needed.
Why planning a route is necessary for GTA Vice City speedrun
Planning a route for GTA Vice City speedrun not only means knowing the map well but also knowing which mission and activity comes next in the sequence. While normal and first-time players play the game to enjoy and learn new things, speedrunners should not follow that tactic.
A speedrunner is usually the one who has remembered the game and knows most (if not all) of the things. Therefore, GTA Vice City speedrunners are advised to spend enough time knowing the map and the mission sequences. There are many interesting locations in Vice City that can potentially help you take shortcuts and find weapons and vehicles.
Moreover, it is also worth knowing that if you just want to complete the main plot of the story by reaching the final mission (Keep Your Friends Close…) as soon as possible, then there is no need to play every mission mentioned above in the GTA Vice City speedrun guide. The game will trigger the final mission only if you complete the most mandatory missions.
This is called any % speedrun and if you are new to this field, you should try this first. However, if you want to get a 100% speedrun completion, then you will have to complete all the aforementioned missions and side activities as soon as possible. More details are discussed below.
Why using bugs and glitches to skip missions is necessary for GTA Vice City speedrun
The Grand Theft Auto series is notorious for having various bugs and glitches. While they create several issues in Grand Theft Auto 5 Online, GTA Vice City speedrun players often use some glitches to skip missions and complete an objective faster.
The Diaz Skip of Diaz Duplication glitch during the mission Rub Out is one of the most popular missions frequently used by the speedrunner community. The mission requires Thomas “Tommy” Vercetti to kill Ricardo Diaz with the help of Lance Vance.
If you take the traditional route, the mission takes around five to 10 minutes depending on your skill. The antagonist hides inside Diaz’s Mansion surrounded by his bodyguards. Moreover, the front door of the house remains locked, forcing the protagonist to take a detour.
However, with the help of the Diaz Skip glitch, you can spam the forward button outside the front door. After some time, the game will spawn you inside the Mansion in a glitched state and you will be able to see Ricardo Diaz standing inside doing nothing. From there, you can easily kill the target and trigger the ending cutscene for the mission.
The GTA Vice City speedrun guide advises players to practice and apply this useful glitch during their gameplay to save time. If you take the traditional route, not only you will have to look after your health bar, but Lance Vance’s health as well. If any of you dies, the mission fails. Therefore, using already available glitches is a standard practice in speedrunning.
Is doing all missions necessary for the GTA Vice City speedrun?
No, doing all missions is not necessary for a GTA Vice City speedrun. As mentioned above, if you are new to this field, then you should focus on doing any % speedrun first. This requires the completion of the following story missions:
- In The Beginning…
- The Party
- Back Alley Brawl
- Jury Fury
- Riot
- Treacherous Swine
- Mall Shootout
- Guardian Angels
- The Chase
- Phnom Penh '86
- The Fastest Boat
- Supply & Demand
- Sir, Yes Sir!
- Death Row
- Rub Out
- Shakedown
- Bar Brawl
- Cop Land
- Checkpoint Charlie
- Spilling the Beans
- Hit the Courier
- Cap the Collector
- Keep Your Friends Close…
GTA Vice City speedrunners will also need to acquire six assets and complete a few missions related to them. The assets and their prices are as follows:
- The Pole Position Club - Ocean Beach, Cost $30,000
- Sunshine Autos Import Garage - Little Havana, Cost $50,000
- Viceport Boatyard - Viceport, Cost $10,000
- Cherry Popper Ice Cream Factory - Little Havana, Cost $20,000
- Print Works - Little Havana, Cost $70,000
- Kaufman Cabs - Little Haiti, Cost $40,000
The missions and objectives related to these assets are as follows:
- The Pole Position Club - Spend $300 and five minutes in the dance room.
- Sunshine Autos Import Garage - All List 1 cars must be delivered to the garage.
- Viceport Boatyard - Checkpoint Charlie mission.
- Cherry Popper Ice Cream Factory - Distribution mission.
- Print Works - Spilling the Beans and Hit the Courier missions.
- Kaufman Cabs - V.I.P., Friendly Rivalry, and Cabmageddon missions.
However, if you want to complete 100%, then the GTA Vice City speedrun guide advises you to do the above-listed missions and all other things and activities offered by the game as soon as possible.