What the Vice City browser port was
In December 2025, the team behind DOS.Zone, a site known for running classic games in the browser, released a web version of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. It was built on reVC, a fan project that reverse-engineered Vice City's engine into open source code, compiled to run in a browser tab. You could try a short demo; to play the full game you had to supply the data files from a copy of Vice City you owned. It ran in an ordinary browser, saved progress and supported controllers, which is why it spread fast on social media and why "vice city browser" became a search term.
The engine code was written by fans. The maps, models, music and story were still Rockstar's, which is what the takedown was about.
For many people it was the first time they had touched Vice City since the PS2 era, and the first time on hardware the game never officially supported, like a Chromebook or a school laptop. That convenience is exactly what made it a target: a version anyone can open with a link is much harder for a publisher to ignore than a project you have to compile yourself.
Why it was taken down
Within days of the coverage, EBRAND, a brand-protection company acting for Take-Two Interactive (Rockstar's parent company), emailed the DOS.Zone team asking them to "disable or shut down" the project. The notice cited the use of the game's artwork, logos and branding and warned of legal remedies if they didn't comply. The team took it down, and reports from December 24 and 25, 2025 confirmed it was gone. Requiring players to bring their own game files did not stop the takedown.
This was not Take-Two's first move against reVC:
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| February 2021 | Take-Two files DMCA takedowns against the re3 (GTA III) and reVC repositories on GitHub |
| Spring 2021 | The developers file counter-notices and GitHub restores the projects |
| September 2021 | Take-Two sues the developers in a US court; GitHub removes the code again |
| 2023 | The two sides settle and the lawsuit is dismissed before trial |
| December 2025 | The DOS.Zone browser version is taken down after the EBRAND notice |
Is Vice City in the browser back?
Reuploads of the same browser port have appeared on other sites since the takedown. None of them is authorized by Rockstar or Take-Two, and given the history above they can disappear at any time. This page does not link to them.
If you go looking anyway, be careful: "Vice City online free" and "GTA unblocked" pages are a common way to push ads, fake downloads and browser extensions you didn't ask for. A real browser port never needs you to install anything, enter card details or allow notifications. Uploading game files from a copy you own does not make an unauthorized copy legal; that was exactly the argument the takedown rejected.
Free · no download · LifeSim
Live your own Vice City life, in the real Miami
Be anyone in real Miami: a job, a crew, a rival who remembers what you did. Free, in your browser.
Legal ways to play Vice City today
| Version | Platforms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| GTA: The Trilogy, The Definitive Edition | PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch | Remastered Vice City bundled with GTA III and San Andreas (2021) |
| GTA: Vice City, The Definitive Edition (mobile) | iOS, Android | Free to download with a 30-minute trial, then a one-time $19.99 purchase or an active GTA+ membership (since September 2025) |
| Netflix Games | None | Vice City left Netflix's mobile catalog on December 13, 2024 |
| Original 2002 PC version | None for sale | Pulled from digital stores in 2021; old discs and keys still work |
The cheapest legal route on a phone is the mobile app's free trial. On PC or console, the Trilogy bundle often goes on sale, and it is the only current way to get Vice City there.
One thing to know before you buy: the Definitive Edition came out on November 11, 2021 to heavy criticism over bugs, visual glitches and changed character models, and Rockstar patched it over the following months. It has the full original story and missions, with updated controls and lighting. If you care most about the original look, a second-hand copy of the 2002 PC or PS2 release is the only way to get it, since those versions are no longer sold digitally.
Browser port vs Definitive Edition vs Ocean Drive
| reVC browser port | Vice City Definitive Edition | Ocean Drive | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Taken down December 2025 | On sale | Live at /play/ |
| Legal | No | Yes | Yes (no Rockstar content) |
| Price | Free, but needed your own game files | Trilogy bundle on PC/console; $19.99 or GTA+ on mobile | Free |
| Runs in a browser | Yes | No (install) | Yes |
| Works on phones | Not officially supported | Yes, as an app | Yes, touch controls |
| Story missions | Full Vice City story | Full Vice City story | Short delivery missions |
| Map | Vice City (fictional) | Vice City (fictional) | Real Miami Beach |
If you want Tommy Vercetti's story, buy the Definitive Edition. If you want to drive around a neon Miami in a browser tab for free, Ocean Drive is the one that will still be there next week.
Ocean Drive: a free browser game set in the real Miami Beach
Vice City was always Miami: Ocean Drive's neon, the Art Deco hotels, the beach. Ocean Drive is a free fan-made open world that runs in your browser on the real map of Miami Beach, built from OpenStreetMap data with real building footprints and real street names. It is not GTA, uses no Rockstar assets, and is not affiliated with Rockstar or Take-Two, so there is nothing to take down.
- Steal any car on the street, including police cars.
- Five wanted stars: grand theft, hit-and-runs and ramming cops all raise your level. Stay away from the police and the stars drop one by one.
- Delivery missions across real streets with a 90-second timer and cash rewards.
- Day and night, with neon lighting up the strip after dark.
- Works on phones with touch controls, and on any computer with a current browser.
No download, no account. Press Play now at the top of the page or open /play/.
Ocean Drive controls and fixes
| Action | Keyboard | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Walk / drive | WASD or arrow keys | On-screen stick |
| Run | Shift | Push the stick all the way |
| Brake | Space | Pull the stick back |
| Steal / enter / exit a car | F or Enter | ENTER button |
| Punch / horn | E or left click | ACTION button |
Not loading?
- Black screen: turn on hardware acceleration in your browser settings (the game uses WebGL) and reload.
- Choppy on a phone: close other tabs and turn off Low Power Mode or Battery Saver.
- Keys do nothing: click the game once so it has focus.
- Blocked on a school or work network: only the network admin can change that.
Vice City is back in GTA 6, but not in a browser
GTA 6 returns to Vice City, now in the fictional state of Leonida, and launches on November 19, 2026 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. There is no PC, mobile or browser version announced, so any "GTA 6 Vice City browser" site is fake. Digital pre-orders can pre-load from November 10 (about 212 GB), and the game unlocks at midnight local time on launch day. Pre-orders made before November 20 include a Vintage Vice City Pack of in-game items.
Want to live in the city instead of tearing through it?
The part of Vice City people remember is often the city itself: the radio, the traffic, the sense that everyone has a life going on. LifeSim is built around that part. It is a free life simulator in the browser on computer or phone, no download and no packs, where you can be anyone in any real city on Earth, Miami included, and live a life day by day. Your character has needs, a job and relationships, and the townspeople around you are AI-driven. Ocean Drive is the chase; LifeSim is the life.