Cutscene models on the PSP were highly detailed, but the in-game pedestrian and protagonist meshes were stripped down. On the PS2, Vic Vance and the citizens of Vice City sport higher polygon counts, particularly in their hands, faces, and clothing wrinkles. Environmental Density

: The PS2 port features a darker, more "gritty" color palette compared to the bright, vibrant (almost "cartoony") look of the PSP. It also reintroduces the "Trails" display option from the original Vice City , which adds a blurry, sun-soaked bloom effect to simulate an 80s aesthetic.

While both games share the same story and map, the differ significantly due to hardware limitations.