Retreading Familiar Ground - GTA III: Portland

Hey gang!

This time I'm going to do something a little different. This is the first in a series of articles I'll be doing on each of the distinctive neighborhoods and districts that make up the world of the Grand Theft Auto games. Since Grand Theft Auto III back in 2001 the main star of the series has not been the protagonist that players inhabits during their time in the game world, but in fact that game world itself.

I've spent a crazy amount of time in the last 13 years getting settled into the environments of these games and now I want to go back and take you with me. Hence the title of this series of articles: Retreading Familiar Ground.

For right now I'm going to keep these articles focused on the GTA series for a couple of reasons. One is that GTA was my first and is still currently my only favorite when it comes to the Open World genre. I like lots of different open world type games but GTA is still the king of the mountain. The other reasons have to do with why GTA is still king in regard to open worlders. It is because these games have complete or near-completely unique, hand-crafted environments.

With each new iteration in the series since the series has gone to 3D the city and surrounding environs have relied less and less on repeating textures or buildings. It is to the point where now, with the latest game GTA V, not a single building or area is a repeat (except in places where appropriate like with public housing and such).

Now because these are rather big games and there's a lot of territory to cover I'm going to break the analysis of each game into more digestible chunks. This week I'm starting with the first of the three islands that make up the world of GTA III: Portland. I'm going to look at each neighborhood in turn that comprises Portland, their distinctive characteristics, the real life neighborhoods they are based on as well as any other random thoughts I have along the way.

Before I dive in I just want to give proper respects to the good folks at http://gta.wikia.com. They're the ones who did most of the research that made these articles possible and I am in their debt. Also all the images in this article came from the iOs version of GTA III as played on an iPad mini.

Your hideout from the beginning of the game, at the edge of the Red Light District.

Grand Theft Auto III takes place in an east coast city called Liberty City that is loosely based on New York. Liberty City of GTA III is made up of three islands connected by bridges and subway: Portland, Staunton Island and Shoreside Vale.

Portland is the first area of the city in GTA III that the player has access to from the start of the game. It is an industrial area based off of Brooklyn and Queens, New York. Portland is made up of eleven different districts.

The Red Light District

The Red Light District is just that: a red light district. It is the seedy entertainment hub of this part of Liberty City and where the player makes their first contact in the game, a mobster from the Leone family named Luigi, making this area technically Leone family turf though you do not see Leone family NPCs walking the streets.

Outside Luigi's club where you take your first missions.

The Red Light District is home to strip clubs and pornography stores. It is based on “The Block” in Baltimore and 42^nd Street in New York. Pedestrian types to walk the streets in this part of Liberty City are old men in nondescript trenchcoats and prostitutes. This is also the only part of the city where you will find the purple suited pimp NPC walking around.

Underneath the elevated train tracks near the subway.

The Red Light District features a few alleyways with stairwells leading up to rooftops that the player can explore to gain a better view of the city. Other interesting features of the area are in the signage of the businesses such as Luigi's Sex Club 7 and Woody's Topless Bar.

A typical scene in the Red Light District.

After you've progressed the story far enough you will be betrayed by the Leone family prompting an assassination mission in which you take to the rooftops across the street from Luigi's club and kill the Leone family patriarch, Salvatore Leone, with a sniper rifle.

Chinatown

To the south of the Red Light District lies Chinatown, a locale based off two Brooklyn neighborhoods, Chinatown and Sunset Park. The area features a closed off pedestrian market place accessible only on foot bracketed by two “Chinatown arches”.

In the open air market in Chinatown.

I always get lost in Chinatown because the layout is just a simple grid and the signage, while distinctive, is all in Chinese which I can't read. There are some alleyways with stairwells leading to rooftops like in the Red Light District but there are no story missions that make require the player to explore these areas.

An example of the signage.

At the southern end is a park with a basketball court next to an old school house. Chinatown is home to the Triad gang and there is no shortage of Triad members in blue suits walking about. Since the Triads and the Leone's are at war during the game the player never does any Triad-specific missions. Instead the Triads are enemies from the start which is a bit unusual because every other gang has at least a few missions or side missions for the player before eventually turning on them.

The basketball court near the old school house.

Trenton

Further south and to the west from Chinatown is Trenton, an industrial area of manufacturing and warehouses based on Red Hook, Brooklyn and taking its name from Trenton, New Jersey. Trenton is home to Joey Leone's garage, a contact the player makes after doing a few missions for Luigi from the Red Light District.

Across the street from LC Pharmaceuticals, near Joey's Garage.

Across from Joey's is the Bitch'n Dog Food Factory run by Marty Chonks, a business owner with gambling debts who calls on the player via the pay phone outside the front gate to take care of the various people trying to collect. These side missions are basically simple pick-up tasks where the player collects the targeted person, delivers them to the factory for Marty to turn into dog food and then disposes of the car.

Near the dog food factory.

Across the street from the dog food factory is Liberty Pharmaceuticals which sits across from a bus depot.

Callahan Point

To the southeast of Trenton is Callahan Point, a small area featuring Greasy Joe's Diner located just under the Callahan Bridge that leads to Staunton Island. This locale is featured in a mission where the player is tasked with picking up a car with a corpse in the trunk and getting it to the car crusher in the junkyard without attracting too much attention.

At Greasy Joe's Diner in Callahan Point.

The area also is home to the Triad-owned Turtle Head Fishing Company which the player blows up in a story mission as part of the Leone's war with the Triads.

Atlantic Quays

Heading east from Callahan Point brings you to Atlantic Quays, a small seaport type area based on DUMBO, New York. Home mainly to warehouses and a couple wooden dock there isn't a whole lot that's interesting about Atlantic Quays.

Looking at the warehouses in Atlantic Quays.

One warehouse is used as one of the locations in a story mission where the player takes Salvatore Leone's girlfriend, Maria, to a dock party after picking up drugs.

Portland Harbor

North of Atlantic Quays lies Portland Harbor, an average seaport based on Brooklyn Navy Yard. It features warehouses, shipping cranes, shipping containers and large shipping vessels docked along the sides all around the harbor.

This area is home a mission where the player uses a sniper rifle to provide cover fire to 8-Ball, the character from the beginning who puts you in contact with the Leone family, as he sets up explosives on a shipping vessel controlled by Columbian drug smugglers.

On top of a building overlooking a crane and shipping vessel at Portland Harbor.

There is also an import/export garage where the player can bring vehicles in exchange for cash based on the list posted outside. Once all the vehicles are collected the garage becomes a spawn point for each one should the player desire them.

Behind this garage is a loading dock for a big shipping boat that works similar to the import/export garage, only for emergency and police vehicles. There is also another garage nearby that the player can bring armored money vans to in exchange for some of the cash they carry.

Portland View

Just across from the harbor and north of Trenton is Portland View which doesn't appear to be based on any specific real-world area. Aside from some nice greenery, some apartment buildings and warehouses it also features the Liberty City Police Department and next to that, Sweeney's General Hospital.

Looking at police HQ and the hospital in Portland View.

This area really serves as a kind of hub in the center of the map for the player to respawn at when they die or get arrested.

Behind the hospital and across the street is a grocery store underneath an elevated train station and near Portland Harbor.

Hepburn Heights

Just north of the Red Light District is Hepburn Heights, a residential area mainly consisting of public housing projects based off of the Queensbridge projects in New York but also sharing similarities with Brownsville and Brooklyn Heights.

Hanging out at Hepburn Heights, thinking about jacking that sweet Diablo gang car.

This area is Diablo turf and it's not uncommon to see them out in the street mugging people or jacking cars. There is a pay phone in the small park area where the player can take missions from El Burro, the leader of the Diablos. Eventually they will turn hostile after a certain point in the story.

Harwood

Just north and east of Hepburn Heights is Harwood, another area not specifically based on any one particular real-world locale. Harwood is characterized by apartment buildings as well as a number of small scale businesses.

You don't need any credit to get a sweet ride in this game. If you know what I mean.

This area is home to the Liberty City Fire Department which sits across from the Head Radio studio and the Borgnine Taxi Company. Harwood is also home to 8-Ball's auto yard where the player can rig vehicles with explosives. Near 8-Ball's is Easy Credit Auto's, a car dealership, and across the street from that is a fueling station. North of the fueling station is the scrap yard where the player can bring vehicles to the car crusher to be crushed for a small monetary reward.

There is also a disused train tunnel in Harwood that runs south underneath Saint Mark's and was originally supposed to connect to Portland View and Portland Harbor. There was initially a terrorist character named Darko that the player would do missions for but this content was removed in the wake of the September 11^th, 2001 terrorist attacks in Manhattan for obvious reasons.

Saint Mark's

South of Harwood is Saint Mark's, Leone turf based on Little Italy but also influenced by Brooklyn neighborhoods such as Carroll Gardens, Bushwick and Prospect Heights. NPC types you see walking around the most are black suited mafiosos wearing black sunglasses and wielding serious firepower like shotguns and M16 assault rifles.

Interesting features of Saint Mark's include a blocked off street and demolished city block that has yet to undergo new construction as well as Italian eateries like Tony Cipriani's Ma's restaurant and Marco's Bistro at the southeastern edge of the district. Both locations serve as the setting for missions.

The geography of this district is also unique in that it features sharp hills which means the buildings have a terraced look to them. This type of geography is not based on any actual New York geography and was probably just made for gameplay variety.

At the northeastern edge beyond a row of apartment buildings is Salvatore Leone's manion where the player takes missions after a certain point.

Outside Salvatore's mansion in Saint Mark's.

Portland Beach

Behind Salvatore's mansion and running south along the eastern side of the island all the way down to Portland Harbor is Portland Beach. This area is loosely based on the beach areas of Coney Island and Fire Island, New York.

Next to the beach is a steep cliff which is used for a checkpoint mission you get from a vehicle parked outside the Supa Save grocery store near Portland Harbor. To the north is Portland Rock, a small island featuring a winding path leading up to a lone lighthouse.

Overall I think the city layout of Portland Island is probably the most fun to explore out of the other three. Each area has its own theme going for it and traversing through the island is always a fun experience. The layout means there is always something visually interesting in view on the horizon, whether it's another nearby neighborhood or the tall buildings from Staunton Island to the west.

By the halfway mark of the game's story however all of the gangs in Portland become hostile to the player making revisiting Portland at later stages for late game missions a dangerous chore. Despite this the island still has lots to see and do. Aside from the main story and side missions much of the game's other content like the collectible hidden packages and stunt jumps can be found here as well. 

Along with the garages you can bring vehicles to almost half of the game's activities and side content are present in Portland in addition to story missions that have you return for one reason or another making it a location you return to often over the course of the game.

For many Portland Island is the iconic image of GTA III they were first introduced to and spent the most time with and still remains so this day. It is highly evocative of Brooklyn, NY and her neighborhoods while still retaining an identity of its own and managing to be a fun game space to play around in.

The next article in this series will focus on the second of the three islands of GTA III, Staunton Island which is largely based on Manhattan island, New York.

Thanks for reading.