Cheats in GTA Vice City are entered by typing a letter code directly during gameplay on PC, or by entering a button combination on console. There is no menu and no phone. What matters more than the entry method is that some cheats in this game have lasting consequences, which sets it apart from the later entries where a reload cleans everything up.
How to Enter Them
On PC, type the code while the game is running. You do not open a console or a text box. The letters are simply typed and the game recognises the sequence, confirming with an on-screen message.
On console, cheats are shoulder and face button sequences entered during play. They have to be entered reasonably quickly, and a sequence typed slowly will not register.
There is no cheat menu that stores what you have used, which is a convenience GTA 4 added later. Our guide on how to dial numbers in GTA 4 covers that system.
The Part People Regret
Some Vice City cheats are not cleanly reversible within a session, and a few affect things that persist. Pedestrian and traffic cheats in particular change world behaviour in ways that can linger, and saving your game while unusual states are active carries that state into the save.
The safe habit is simple: do not save after using cheats. If you want to mess about, do it, then reload rather than saving over your progress.
They Block Completion
Using cheats interferes with 100 percent completion, and some of them can make specific missions unwinnable rather than easier. A weapon or vehicle cheat fired off mid-mission is a common way to fail something that was going fine.
If you are working toward completion, our guide on how to progress the story covers the property gate that actually stalls most playthroughs, and it is not something a cheat solves.
What They Are Actually Useful For
Two honest use cases:
- Seeing the map. Vehicle and flight cheats let you look at parts of Vice City you would otherwise reach much later.
- Messing about after you are done. Once the story is finished and completion is settled, there is nothing left to break.
For most things people reach for cheats to solve, the legitimate route is not much slower. Our guides on how to get the tank, how to lose a wanted level and how to increase health all cover routes that do not put your save at risk.
A Note on Cheat Lists
Code lists for this game are widely copied between aggregator sites, and the quality varies. Some entries are for other games in the series, some are outdated, and some do not work. Treat anything promising an effect the game does not otherwise contain with suspicion.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you enter cheats on PC? Type the letter code during gameplay. There is no console or text box.
Do cheats disable anything? They interfere with 100 percent completion and can make some missions unwinnable.
Is it safe to save after using a cheat? No. Reload instead of saving, because some effects persist into the save.
Is there a cheat menu? No. That was added in GTA 4.