Tropic
The Tropic is a large drivable boat in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, and Grand Theft Auto IV.
Design
GTA Vice City — GTA Vice City Stories
Earlier iterations of the Tropic prior to GTA IV are essentially flybridge motor yachts or large cabin cruisers, evidently featuring living space on the lower compartment of the boat and a partially covered bridge on top; in GTA Vice City and GTA Vice City Stories, a small kitchen is visible from the door in the back, while in GTA San Andreas, the front windows are semi-transparent, allowing the player to see a small living area with red curtains, tables and two sofas. The Tropic in GTA Vice City Stories, however, is sharply reduced in height, with its top chopped and featuring an open flybridge.
It is also one of the boats wanted by the Civil Asset Forfeiture Impound for export in GTA Vice City Stories.
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Interiors of the Tropic in GTA San Andreas; the former is available in all pre-GTA IV Tropics.
GTA IV
In GTA IV, the Tropic is no longer a houseboat, but a speedboat with moderate speed. The boat, however, is distinguishable from other speedboats by its accessories. For any Tropics with an optional spoiler, retractable roofs (front, back, or both) or a glass fairing (front only) may be further attached on the spoiler itself. As the boat is reduced to a size smaller than even the Jetmax or Squalo, the title of largest boat now belongs to the Tug Boat, which is easily twice the size of the pre-GTA IV Tropic.
Performance
Being large, the Tropic between GTA Vice City and GTA Vice City Stories is generally one of the slowest of all boats (in a similar level as the Marquis and Rio) due to its size and weight. The GTA IV rendition, however, features improved performance, but remains a low-end speedboat with a similar speed as the game's Dinghy.