Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (PS2) Official Strategy Guide [Paperback]

Title: The PlayStation 2 Guide Needs To Be RECALLED, REVISED, REPRINTED, And REPUBLISHED!
Stars: 1 out of 5
Date: May 22, 2007

Below is a review of this product: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories Official Strategy Guide for PlayStation 2 (ISBN-10 #0744009162 - First Printing). Amazon may display this review on the page of another version of this product, for which this review may not apply. After reading this review, please click on the link so that you can be assured that the product this review applies to is the same one you thought it was for.
--------------------------------------------------

The BradyGames Grand Theft Auto PlayStation 2 guides have had errors in the past. For example, the Grand Theft Auto 3 guide is missing information on some of the side jobs and non-mission tasks; the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas guide has incorrect screen shots and information on the Photo Ops. However, this guide is the absolute worst I have ever seen. It seems that the only difference between the PlayStation Portable (PSP) and PlayStation 2 (PS2) versions of the guide is the text at the bottom of the front cover and the controls listed on pages 3 and 4.

The BIGGEST ERROR is that the PS2 exclusive content is not in the guide at all. These include 6 extra Unique Stunt Jumps, 5 extra Rampages (and 1 moved), and 6 extra Side Missions. The list is below, but for details see the PS2 Exclusive Content Guide at [...]

* Unique Stunt Jump 1 - Little Havana
* Unique Stunt Jump 2 - Starfish Island
* Unique Stunt Jump 3 - Vice Point
* Unique Stunt Jump 4 - Vice Point
* Unique Stunt Jump 5 - Vice Port
* Unique Stunt Jump 6 - Vice Port
* Rampage 1 - Little Havana
* Rampage 2 - Starfish Island
* Rampage 3 - Downtown
* Rampage 4 - Prawn Island
* Rampage 5 - Vice Point
* Rampage 6 - Ocean Beach
* Side Mission - Playground On The Dock
* Side Mission - Rush!
* Side Mission - Hyman Memorial O.D.T.
* Side Mission - Caddy Daddy
* Side Mission - Playground At The Park
* Side Mission - Crims On Water Wings

The SECOND BIGGEST ERROR is that the guide lists tons of Multiplayer content that doesn't exist in the PS2 version. Details about this are included in the list of errors I found below.

The THIRD BIGGEST ERROR would relate to incorrect mission-related information. I have not found much of it because I have just started playing the game, but I know that there are a lot of errors in there (all of which were undoubtedly in the PSP guide too). Some of the reviewers over here at Amazon have made mention of a few things (though I'm sure that there are many more errors).

Here's the list of errors I've personally found, though again, this should not be seen as a complete list of errors:

PAGE 1 - Table of Contents - The listing of "Multiplayer Scenarios" on page 30 (feature non-existent in PS2 version).

PAGE 5 - The "Custom Tracks" section (feature non-existent in PS2 version).

PAGE 5 - The "Saving Progress" section mentions saving to a Memory Stick and the Custom Tracks feature, both of which only apply to the PSP version.

PAGE 25 - The VCPD Wintergreen name is on two lines instead of one. (This is just a cosmetic error and not a PSP/PS2 difference, but I thought I'd note it anyway.)

PAGES 30-33 - All of these Multiplayer Missions are NOT in the PS2 version. Heck, the first paragraph even mentions PSP and UMD.

PAGE 37 - The "Story Mode Missions" section mentions Multiplayer content (feature non-existent in PS2 version).

PAGE 37 - Mentions 30 Unique Stunt Jumps and 30 Rampages - there are 36 Jumps and 35 Rampages in the PS2 version.

PAGE 37 - The Multiplayer Unlockables: Vehicles section (feature non-existent in PS2 version).

PAGES 38-40 - All of the information on these pages is for Multiplayer Missions which is NOT in the PS2 version.

PAGE 41 - The Multiplayer "100% Game Completion Characters" column/section.

PAGE 44 - The barber shop Red Balloon doesn't seem to be on the map. It should be a bit north of #20 listed on the map.

PAGES 48-51, 157-158 - Only lists 30 Unique Stunt Jumps, while the PS2 version has 36.

PAGES 52-56, 159-162 - Only lists 30 Rampages, while the PS2 version has 35 (and one was moved).

PAGE 62 - The Hovercraft side mission says that it is available at the beginning of the game. This is false. The craft isn't there at the beginning of the game and probably doesn't appear until after the bridges open up (otherwise you could just use it to get to the second island early).

PAGE 240 (LAST PAGE) - The "Printing Code" section says "For example, 06-1 shows that the first printing of the book occurred in 2007." It should say "07-1".

BACK COVER - An interesting cosmetic error is that the sample pages shown as 14 and 15 are really 84 and 85 with some slight design changes.

On several pages throughout the guide it says to press UP when in the PS2 version
it would be R3:
* PAGE 15 - The Ambulance description.
* PAGE 16 - The Cabbie description.
* PAGE 18 - The FBI Rancher, FBI Washington, and Fire Truck descriptions.
* PAGE 19 - The Hunter description.
* PAGE 21 - The Rhino description.
* PAGE 24 - The Taxi, VCPD Cheetah, VCPD Cruiser, and VCPD Enforcer descriptions.
* PAGE 25 - The VCPD Wintergreen description.
* PAGE 57 - The Taxi Driver "Details" section.
* PAGE 58 - The Paramedic "Details" section.
* PAGE 59 - The Vigilante "Details" section.
* PAGE 60 - The Fire Fighter "Details" section.
* PAGE 110 - The "Cancelling Empire Missions" section.
* PAGE 127 - The "Air Speed" section.
* PAGE 163 - The Air Rescue "Details" section.

Before I wrote this review, I wanted to give BradyGames the chance to do the right thing: recall the first printing, release a new correctly-written version, and offer replacements for all those folks who bought the vastly-erroneous first printing. In other words, wanted them to make a *REAL* PS2 version of the guide and give me a copy in exchange for the absolutely almost-useless "PlayStation 2" guide I bought that they currently have on the market (which they should recall and destroy - or rebrand as "for PlayStation Portable").

Sadly, BradyGames not only chose NOT to do the right thing, they chose to simply ignore my e-mails altogether.

Over two months after the book was released, BradyGames finally posted some updates on their site with the missing information and error corrections. Of course, this is only a "patch" for the problem, and not a solution. They should recall all copies of the First Printing, add this new information and corrections, and offer revised copies (Second Printing?) free-of-charge to all of the people who bought the error-ridden First Printing. It isn't nice to make the customers download and print out several pages of new information and make hand-written corrections.

Here is the information from the BradyGames site:

PS2 Updates

* Rampages (7.6 MB, PDF) - bit.ly/tmSDpj

* Six New Stunt Jumps (4.8 MB, PDF) - bit.ly/tE12wR

* Five New Pastimes (3.2 MB, PDF) - bit.ly/vGkhfi

* Yellow Markers are now Pink Markers.

* References to Up should be R3.

* Page 5: No Custom Tracks in PS2 version.

* Page 14: 37 Sniper Rifle and 38 Rocket Launcher are not available until eastern island is opened.

* Page 25: The Violator boat is not included in Vehicle Showroom.

* Pages 30-33: No Multiplayer in PS2 version.

* Page 35: Bulletproof Sanchez ($4000) is unlocked at your first safe house for completing Conduct Unbecoming.

* Page 35: Bulletproof Ventoso ($2500) is unlocked at the Downtown King Knuts for completing From Zero to Hero.

* Page 35: Marquis ($4500) is unlocked across from your first safe house in the water for completing From Zero to Hero.

* Page 35: Skimmer ($4500) is unlocked at the dock behind the Clymenus Suite safe house for completing From Zero to Hero.

* Page 35: Squallo ($4500) is unlocked in the water behind the Compound safe house for completing From Zero to Hero.

* Page 62: Hover Craft Race 1 (Pastime) Availability should be after completing From Zero to Hero.

* Pages 37-41: No Multiplayer Unlockables.

* Page 73: You get the Pistol inside the barracks instead of the M16.

* Page 77: Round 4: Assault Rifle. You need to score 2000, not 2500. Round 5: Sniper Rifle. You need to score 2500, not 3000.

* Page 77: "See #17 and #18" should be "See #7 and #15."

* Page 95: There is always a Regina parked on the sidewalk outside Louise's sister's place.

* Page 99: You do not get New Multiplayer Mode Content for completing To Victor, the Spoils.

* Page 122: Reward: None for Jive Drive.

* Page 135: There is no Multiplayer in the PS2 version.

* Pages 154-155: The screenshots for Red Balloon 73 and 81 have been swapped.

* Page 190: The Bovver '64 is unlocked for purchase at your safe house for completing White Lies.

All info comes from the BradyGames official page for the book: [...]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As usual having any decent guide for a Grand Theft Auto title is more than useful and this guide still has some very helpful maps and guides to the various items and activities found in Vice City Stories. The most glaring issue is that this is a copy of the PSP version guide - it even has the multiplayer elements left in it and doesn't cover the PS2 specific elements in any detail (or at all). Helpful, but a lazy effort from Brady unfortunately.

I should say at the beginning that I bought my copy of the game in the UK. Rockstar (the game developer) claims that with regard to content all versions are identical, except for Germany and Australia where they are censored.

Now, about the book. It indeed contains not only very detailed description of each of the main story missions, but also strategies to complete the mission, and relevant map cutouts with weapon, health, and armor pickups as related to a given mission. Lots of information about multiplayer minigames and unlockables. There is also very useful info about side missions and odd jobs. For example, there are detailed routes for all courses in Quad, Dirtbike, and BMX races. So, before attempting to run a course, you can practice and get yourself aquainted with this particlular route.

Be prepared to find many extremly annoying inaccuracies in this book. It gives false locations for about 1-2 red balloons and wrong descriptions for, maybe, 4-6 balloons. What is worse, it gets completely wrong about 70% of rampages (these are certain challenges where you have to defeat a given number of enemies within a time limit with a given weapon). The book gives correct locations of these, but the descriptions are completely wrong (different weapons, different objectives). Therefore, the strategies in the book are completely irrelevant to what you actually encounter in the game. This is something quite strange. Every Brady guide for GTA games has its fair share of mistakes. But what I find here really blows my mind. Also, ther is no map of police bribes in this guide. On some mission specific maps, these pickups are indicated, but it's not clear whether these are complete. You will find yourself going to the internet to find more precise information about this game.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 8 reviews  2.9 out of 5 stars