Vice City in GTA III Era: Difference between revisions

===Ocean Beach===

[[Ocean Beach]] is an upper-class tourist district consisting of a few skyscrapers and many low rises, directly based on [[wp:South Beach|South Beach]] and located in the southeastern most area of Vice City. The area is primarily occupied by seaside and beach side apartments, hotels and upper-class businesses. An Art Deco Historic District-like row of Art Deco and Modernist low rises are also present; the road stretched along the row mimics that of [[wp:Ocean Drive (South Beach)|Ocean Drive]], bearing much resemblance to their real life counterparts in architecture and layout, and includes a flora partition between the low rises and beach, similar to [[wp:Lummus Park Historic District|Lummus Park]]. The lighthouse located at the southeastern most point mimics the [[wp:Cape Florida Light|Cape Florida lighthouse]], the oldest structure in Miami, located in [[wp:Key Biscayne, Florida|Key Biscayne]], and a popular beach side tourist destination.

===Washington Beach===

[[Washington Beach]] is a district between Ocean Beach from the south and Vice Point from the north, encompassing the northern end of the Art Deco Historic District-like beachfront district, its inland area, and the southern half of a smaller island to the west containing two construction sites and several additional apartments and housing. The area is based on the section of Miami beach unofficially known as "Mid-Beach".

===Vice Point===

[[Vice Point]] is a more middle class and residential area of Vice City Beach, covering the remaining areas of the island at the north, and consisting of larger apartment buildings and hotels aligned along the shore as well as medium sized homes and smaller apartment complexes inland. This set-up resembles the rows of developments along Collins Avenue in Miami Beach, as well as the residential set-up of that city. Vice point is geographically based on [[wp:North Beach (Miami Beach)|North Beach]] in Miami.

===Leaf Links===

[[Leaf Links]] is a collection of three islands located just west of Vice Point encompassing the Leaf Links Country Club, each island connected to another island with bridges. A road cuts through the middle of the island cluster, where the clubhouse-cum-entrance is located, requiring a pedestrian bridge to connect both half of the clusters. Much of the eastern island's narrow waterways are formed from the partitions between Leaf Links and Vice Point.

===Downtown===

[[Downtown Vice City|Downtown]] mirrors [[wp:Downtown Miami|Downtown Miami]], where the areas sees the highest concentration of skyscrapers, both residential and commercial. Like its real-life counterpart, Downtown is believed to be a more formal, financial district of Vice City, with a number of large office buildings, including the city's tallest building, possibly based on the [[wp:Southeast Financial Center|Wachovia Financial Center]] and the [[wp:Miami Tower|Bank of America Tower]].

===Little Havana===

Drawing from the real-life [[wp:Little Havana|Little Havana]] in Miami, Vice City's [[Little Havana]] consists of a predominantly Spanish-speaking Cuban population. The area is controlled by the [[Cubans|Cuban gang]], led by [[Umberto Robina]] from his [[Alberto Robina|father's]] [[Café Robina|cafe]], located in the southwest end of Little Havana. Due to Little Havana's proximity with Little Haiti, occasional fights and gun battles between Cuban and Haitian gangs erupt in areas bordering the two districts.

===Little Haiti===

Also inspired by a [[wp:Little Haiti|real-life district]] in Miami, [[Little Haiti]] is predominantly inhabited by Haitians and is home to the [[Haitians|Haitian gang]], led by [[Auntie Poulet]], from her small wooden shack among other shacks at center of Little Haiti. The gang's [[Haitian Drugs Factory|solvent factory]], located at the west side of Little Haiti, was [[Trojan Voodoo|destroyed]] in a Cuban ambush, aided by Tommy Vercetti. Little Haiti is noted to be more run-down than Little Havana, with the presence of poorly maintained buildings, and low wealth businesses and smaller homes.

Vice City's airport is known as the [[Escobar International Airport]] (EIA), a possible pun on Pablo Escobar, an infamous Colombian drug lord. Although mildly similar in location as [[wp:Miami International Airport|Miami's international airport]], neighboring Little Havana, the airport structures and layout of the compound do not appear to be based on any airports seen in Miami. Also, all airports in Miami are located inland, but the EIA is located on a peninsula.

The EIA consists of two terminals, one at the north which is basically a standard blocky terminal with the addition of below ground entrances, while the other in the south is more distinctive, with its weaved roof and roof-high windows facing the airport's southern airside. Both structures are separated by lawns and a car park, and it is unknown if the terminals are connected in any other way aside roads. Further north in the airport peninsula is the [[Fort Baxter Air Base]], a military installation that houses military equipment and personnel.

==Smaller Islands==

===[[Starfish Island]]===

Starfish Island is the third largest island in Vice City and is based on Miami's exclusive [[wp:Star Island, Miami Beach, Florida|Star Island]]; or perhaps other island communities such as [[wp:Belle Isle (Miami Beach)|Belle Isle]] or other [[wp:Venetian Islands|Venetian Islands]] along the [[wp:Venetian Causeway|Venetian Causeway]], and adjoining the [[wp:MacAuthur Causeway|MacAuthur Causeway]].

Starfish Island is a community of upper-wealth residents, most of whom live in large houses and mansions, some with their own jetty. The area is also supplied with their own security guards, who patrol the island and open fire upon any troublemakers; this gives the residents of the area a feeling of safety, and not at least because of the island's proximity to the gang-riddled townships of Little Havana and Little Haiti. but these sercuity are actually  pigs the security gang based through out vice city.

The largest residence on Starfish Island is the Diaz Mansion, previously owned by drug baron Ricardo Diaz and acquired by the player part-way through the game (and renamed Vercetti Estate), which comes complete with a rooftop helipad. The main interior of the mansion strongly resembles the home of fictional drug lord Tony Montana in the 1983 film, "[[wp:Scarface (1983 film)|Scarface]]", only missing the "The World Is Yours" globe and the lavish master bedroom.

===[[Prawn Island]]===

Prawn Island is a small northern ghetto island linking Downtown Vice City in the west and Vice Point in the east. Like Starfish Island, Prawn Island consists of several mansions, in addition to several adjoining businesses and a film studio. Most of these premises and homes, however, have long been abandoned, and the mansions are now occupied by the Streetwannabes street gang.

===Landmark Differences===

[[Image:NeonVice.jpg|thumb|200px|The [[Ocean Front Hotel]] one of the many structures that are adorned with more neon light in the GTA Vice City Stories rendition.]]

*A populated trailer park exists just south of Little Havana close to [[Sunshine Autos]], a car showroom. The trailer park serves as the location where [[Victor Vance]] would receive missions from [[Marty Jay Williams]], head of [[Trailer Park Mafia|his gang]].

The Sharks control the Washington Beach and Ocean Beach areas of the city, dominating in smuggling, robbery, and drug trafficking. After their businesses are seized by the Vance Crime Family, the gang is suggested to have become the Streetwannabes street gang by 1986.

As Victor Vance is dishonorably discharged from the military, the [[Mendez Cartel]], headed by brothers [[Diego and Armando Mendez|Armando and Diego Mendez]], set up shop in Vice City and become the most powerful criminal organization in the city, basing their operations at [[Prawn Island]] and becoming rivals of [[Diaz's Gang]]. Originally allied with the Vance Crime Family, they eventually betrayed Victor, leading to their own deaths (with the help of Ricardo Diaz) and the collapse of their organization.