GTA Wiki
Register
Advertisement
GTA Wiki
19,722
pages

For the state in the HD Universe, see State of Leonida.

Wikipedia-logo-en
Wikipedia-logo-en
Wikipedia has an article on: Florida

The State of Florida, nicknamed the Sunshine State, is an American state in the 3D Universe of the Grand Theft Auto series, located in the southeastern United States of America and appearing as the setting of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories.

In the 2D Universe, the real-life state also appears in the chapter section menu in the original Grand Theft Auto, although it is not specified to use the real-life name or a fictional name. [1]

It is notorious for being one of the few major Grand Theft Auto settings without a fictional name, alongside the 2D Universe's England cities.

Both the state of Florida and Vice City are also briefly mentioned in the shared 3D Universe title Manhunt 2.[2][3]

Overview[]

Florida is a large, populous state located on a peninsula in the southeasternmost area of the country. It is bordered to the north by Georgia and Alabama.

The state's nickname is the "Sunshine State", but severe weather is a common occurrence in the state. The Hurricanes Gordy and Hermione play a major role in the storyline, serving as a plot device to prevent the player from accessing future unlockable areas.

Vice City is the only accessible area of the state. Fictional adaptations of real-life cities such as Tampa (home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers football team), Reddick (from which originated the V-Rock radio station and Lazlow Jones's career) and Miami (exclusive to the 3D Universe only) are mentioned.

Swamplands and coral keys are also mentioned to exist, as in its real-life counterpart, although they do not play any role in the storyline and are not visited. Florida is host to many types of maritime wildlife, including sharks, dolphins, sea turtles and many species of fishes and birds.

Alligators are also mentioned to inhabit the unseen swamplands, and it is considered the official state reptile of Florida.

Similar to its real-life counterpart, Florida is notorious for its large collection of Art Deco and Streamline Moderne buildings, most of which are located on the Vice City Beach resort island.

Inspiration[]

The state of Florida is inspired by the real-life state of the same name in the southeastern United States.

Attractions and Landmarks[]

Florida is world-renowned for its beach resorts and amusement parks such as the Fun World. NASA also operates a field center in the state.[4]

Transportation[]

Unlike the real-life counterpart, neither Florida or Vice City have any metrorail systems, and they are not mentioned to exist in any form.

Florida has only one known/named public airport, that being the Escobar International Airport, serving Vice City.

Bayshore Avenue is also referred to be part of Florida's highway system in promotional postcards.[5]

Sports[]

Florida has only one known football team based in Vice City, the Vice City Mambas. Media celebrity BJ Smith used to be a former tight-end for the football team, as well as running illegal businesses in Florida.

They are not physically seen in-game, except for a cameo appearance in Grand Theft Auto Advance.

Postcards[]

Vice City postcards available on Kent Paul's 80's Nostalgia Zone! promotional website for Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Billboards[]

HD Universe[]

Main article: State of Leonida

As Rockstar North preserved the previous fictional names of cities and states after the series' reboot, the state of Florida's existence was also originally considered valid in the HD Universe canon of the series, before being retconned as non-canon.[6]It was only mentioned in Grand Theft Auto IV. In subsequent titles, Vice City's mentions are no longer accompanied by the state's name, foreshadowing the state's rebranding.[7][8]

Florida was eventually rendered non-canon in favor of the addition of the State of Leonida in Grand Theft Auto VI, which hosts the cities of Vice City and Vice Beach (both originally treated as Florida locations) and several reinterpretation of real-life Floridian counties.

The "Vice City, Leonida" rebranding is exclusive to the HD Universe and does not affect the established "Vice City, Florida", from previous titles, as the 3D Universe trilogy is set in a completely separate canon.

In addition to the state's name, both the "Miami" metropolitan area and the "Fun World" theme park have never existed in the HD Universe, replaced by Vice-Dale and a yet-unnamed amusement park. The HD Universe counterpart of the city of Tampa has yet to be revealed.

Trivia[]

  • During the mission Jury Fury in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Tommy calls a hit and run driver a "dumb Florida moron".
  • During The Introduction in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Salvatore claims "Sonny Forelli got himself pasted all over Florida", referring to Sonny's death in Vice City, Florida, during Keep Your Friends Close...
  • Florida's retcon in the HD Universe is one of the three major location name retcons in the series, followed by recurring Hollywood actors from Grand Theft Auto III advertisements being mentioned as Vinewood actors in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
    • Similarly to Florida's retcon, the city of San Andreas from the original 1997's Grand Theft Auto was also briefly considered valid in the 3D Universe, with the real-life San Francisco being mentioned as "San Andreas" in Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. It was eventually retconned as the state's name in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

References[]

  1. Chapter Selection Menu in Grand Theft Auto
  2. I need to go to Vice City, and just relax...
    — "John A" during Bee's Honey Pot
  3. Florida license plates from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City appear on shared universe vehicles in Manhunt 2 (such as the Stinger), alongside Cottonmouth's ambiguous state's license plates.
  4. Pastor Richards' VCBI file on ViceCity.com
  5. Original file name "postcardHighway_siteLarge.jpg"
  6. There are in total 4 subtle mentions to Florida by name in the HD Universe, now canonically Leonida mentions:
    • Hossan Ramzy refers to the major ports of Florida in an email, rebranded as many ports of Leonida including PortViceCity.
    • When asked by Eddie Low if he is from Liberty City, Niko Bellic sarcastically says, "No, I'm from Florida."
    • During a Weazel News report, it is said that a senator solicited gay sex in Florida.
    • Florida was mentioned on the website "Myonlineme.com".
  7. Rockstar North's plans to reboot Vice City were considered as earlier as 2012:
    "Exploring Grand Theft Auto: Vice City’s lasting impact on society with Rockstar’s Leslie Benzies" - Adam Rosenberg, Digital Trends (December 13, 2012)
  8. Vice - The Musical

See Also[]

Advertisement