Grand Theft Auto 3 / Vice City Collection is also available for PS2, but this is merely a repackaging of the original two games. No improvements or changes have been made.

Control is significantly different from the PS2 version, mainly due to the different button configuration and lack of shoulder buttons. Inventory items are now cycled with the D-pad, which in my opinion is a better way to do it. The gas is the right trigger instead of the A button which gives you a better range of throttle. The Xbox controller has a much more responsive stick than the Dual Shock (regardless of the brand you are using) so you have much better control over your car allowing for much more precise driving.

You can now read every sign and see inside every building (sort of – window textures are really nice now). Cars have more polygons and look smoother with curvier lines. Their shiny surface reflects their surroundings in real-time and the damage model is significantly improved. Character models have been upgraded so you can see fine details like clothing, hands with fingers, and perfectly lip-synched voices during the cutscenes.

The draw distance is staggering. Vice City allows you to take to the air in planes and helicopters. On the PS2 this definitely showed the limitations of the PS2 but the Xbox can draw clear out to the horizon with stunning detail. That’s not to say the game is not without its fair share of pop-up. Yes, even the mighty Xbox cannot manage to keep up with the level of oncoming traffic and detailed buildings as you race through these massive cities. But at least the Xbox is able to push the pop-up much further into the distance and draw it in much faster than the PS2. It’s only mildly annoying and still a huge leap forward.

You can still toggle the atmospheric effects on the Xbox. This puts the game in a perpetual haze, almost like a thick humidity that creates lens flares and “enhances” the nighttime neon lighting effects. I found the game looks much cleaner with these effects turned “off” but feel free to experiment.

The final feather in the Xbox cap is the HDTV 480p support that makes this game look just as crisp and clean as the PC version running at the same resolution. Plus, playing in widescreen just gives you that interactive movie feeling. Even with all of these enhancements I am still forced to admit that this series looks a bit "dated", especially in light of the more recent games we have been seeing on the Xbox. It's definitely a step up from the PS2 and even the PC but not exactly a showcase title for the Xbox.

Voice acting and the scripts for both games are unchanged and just as strong as they were in the earlier versions. There is a great story to be told in both games and the quality of the speech along with a famous list of credited and unaccredited contributing voice actors makes this a flawless theatrical presentation.

Both GTA3 and Vice City are famous for their music, Vice City more so, having spawned a CD soundtrack box set that should be on every gamers music shelf. The included soundtrack is presented as a series of radio station broadcasts that you can cycle through, but both games also allow you to use your own music by implementing a new tape deck/CD changer option. Considering I have already ripped my Vice City soundtrack to the Xbox hard drive and play it in just about every other Xbox title it almost seems ironic to even consider playing “other” music in these games. Given the 100+ hour nature of both titles it’s quite possible you might get tired of the included content, so rip away. The feature is there if you need or want it.

This game has already been made famous (or rather infamous) on the PS2 and PC, and with some amazing technological improvements you can now play the best version of one of the best games of our decade.