Everyone knows what to expect with Grand Theft Auto. It’s sort of like the gaming equivalent of a Harry Potter book – it’s comfortable, easy to pick up and everything feels familiar. This second outing on PSP is no different, and in places it even manages to improve on its predecessors.

There’s no point going into detail about the plot here. Suffice it to say that the entirety of Vice City has been transferred to PSP, and it’s made the jump to a portable console extremely well. As such, you’ve got a nice big urban area to explore and a load of new missions to complete. A wide variety of vehicles are available to help you get around, including the standard cars and boats but with the welcome addition of helicopters to keep things interesting.

Graphically, there’s very little difference between the portable and console versions, and the same washed-out pastel styling that worked so well last time around is here in spades. The cheesy 80’s vibe is still intact, although four years on it doesn’t feel quite as fresh as it used to.

The missions are mostly well thought out, with a lot of emphasis on changing vehicles part-way through. It’s a real improvement on the slightly disappointing Liberty City Stories, and means you’ll end up knowing your way around Vice City extremely quickly. The controls are slick and responsive, and vehicles behave in exactly the same way you expect them to, especially if you’ve played through previous GTA games.

It wouldn’t be Grand Theft Auto without a liberal helping of sarcasm, and Vice City Stories thankfully sticks with what works. The 80’s setting provides some excellent gags, and the crassly stereotypical characters and subversive radio stations are darkly funny throughout.

The only real problem with Vice City Stories is the fact that the series is starting to show its age. It’s still massively enjoyable but there’s really not much that qualifies as ‘new’ here – the environments have been rehashed and the gameplay really doesn’t differ in any tangible way from previous outings. This isn’t necessarily a criticism – let’s face it, GTA is still one of the best gaming franchises in history – but a bit more innovation would have been nice.

Vice City Stories is a great game, and a noticeable improvement over its predecessor. It’s a highly entertaining, familiar experience with plenty of humour. If you were getting bored of Grand Theft Auto last time around, chances are you won’t find anything to renew your enthusiasm, but for everyone else this is a must-have.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories is out now.