Most players should buy the Standard edition digitally. At $79.99 it gets the Vintage Vice City Pack and a free month of GTA+, and if you fall for Leonida you can upgrade to Ultimate later for the price gap. Buy Ultimate ($99.99) up front only if you already know you want its cars, businesses and weapons. Buy the box only if you need a retail gift or a store credit deal, because it is a download code, not a disc.
Prices by country are on price and editions. This page is the decision guide. More buying help in the guides hub.
Standard vs Ultimate vs box: what do you get?
| Standard digital | Ultimate (digital only) | Standard box | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US price | $79.99 | $99.99 | $79.99 |
| UK / eurozone | £69.99 / €79.99 | £89.99 / €99.99 | Same as Standard |
| Vintage Vice City Pack | Yes (before Nov 20) | Yes (before Nov 20) | Yes (before Nov 20) |
| Free month of GTA+ | Yes (digital pre-order) | Yes (digital pre-order) | No |
| 16 Ultimate items | No (upgrade available) | Yes | No (upgrade available) |
| Disc | No | No | No, download code |
| Resale | No | No | Unredeemed code only |
US prices are confirmed by Microsoft via Xbox Wire. UK and eurozone prices come from store listings read in October reported.
What does the Ultimate Edition add?
Rockstar Support lists 16 items, as compiled by gtasix.org reported:
- Vehicles: ‘95 Grotti Cheetah, Jason’s Safehouse Vehicles, Ganado Retro Build, Shitzu Squalo boat, ‘67 Vapid Dominator Buggy and Garage, Classic Car Collection
- Weapons and style: Hawk & Little Morgan revolvers, Personalized Weapon Variants, Vice City Styles
- Businesses and places: Rideout Customs Mod Shop, Sara’s Unisex Salon, Stock 305 Clothing Store, Electric Fang Tattoo Parlor, One-Eyed Willie’s Mod Shop, Goodtime Gear, PTT Youngin$ Compound
Two catches. Five of the businesses are “only open for business with the Ultimate Edition”, and the extras unlock across the story’s chapters, not all on day one. So paying extra on launch night doesn’t give you everything at once.
Why do some Ultimate lists look different?
VICE’s June 24 list adds Girardi and Klose pistols, a Dinka Enduro and a Crest Kayak, and says the Stanier and weapon skins are Standard bonuses. That list is probably garbled. Rockstar’s own pages name Jason’s Girardi ES9 and Lucia’s Klose K17 as their character pistols, which may explain the mix-up speculation. We follow the Rockstar Support list. Cars on the list are covered in vehicles, guns in weapons.
Can you upgrade later?
Yes. The Ultimate Edition Upgrade costs the gap between editions: $20, £20 or €20 on Xbox, with C$30, A$30, NZ$35, ₹1,500 and ¥2,480 elsewhere reported. PlayStation hides the upgrade price until you own the game reported.
That makes “Standard now, upgrade if hooked” the low-risk choice. You lose nothing, since the Ultimate items unlock through the story anyway.
Should you buy the box copy?
The boxed Standard edition is a download code in a box. There is no disc and no paper map, just a folded poster according to early unboxings reported. It reached shops on Nov 12. Full story: physical copy, no disc.
Reasons to buy it anyway:
- You want to give it as a gift, or pay with retailer credit or a store deal.
- You want an Xbox code, which Rockstar says is not region-locked. PlayStation codes are locked to your PSN region.
Reasons to skip it:
- It does not include the free GTA+ month.
- Some buyers report codes that were already used or missing reported. Kotaku could not reproduce it and Rockstar has announced no fix.
- Discs and street-date breaks are impossible, so there is no early-play advantage.
What about the $399 Collector’s Box?
“The Goodtime State – Vice City Collection” is merchandise, not a game edition. The game is sold separately. It costs $399.99 (£349.99 / €399.99) on the Rockstar Store, one per account, 18+ only, and includes a Macca the Gator figure, Oakley Frogskins and a double-sided map poster. Details on Collector’s Box. Macca fans, this is your figure.
Does the GTA+ month matter?
It gives a month of Rockstar’s GTA Online membership, with GTA$ deposits and a back catalogue of Rockstar games. It reportedly auto-renews at about $8 a month unless you cancel reported. Nobody has said whether GTA+ will carry into a future GTA VI online mode. See GTA+ explained.
Our pick
- Most people: Standard digital, bought before Nov 20.
- Collectors of in-game cars and businesses: Ultimate, or upgrade once you’re hooked.
- Gift buyers: the box, but keep the receipt, since a bad code can only be fixed by the retailer or Rockstar.
Still deciding? The day-one checklist covers what to do after you buy.