A Vice City marketing push has begun in Miami, with a sign welcoming visitors to the fictional setting of Grand Theft Auto VI now sitting atop the Kaseya Center.
GTA VI, scheduled for a November release, is set in the imaginary Vice City, which is heavily inspired by Miami. Miami-Dade County officials met with "representatives" of Rockstar Games, the game’s developer, and entered into an agreement to install a sign reading "Welcome to Vice City" on the roof of the Kaseya Center, home of the Miami Heat.
During Miami-Dade County's second budget hearing, Christopher Hudtwalcker, the mayor's chief of staff, announced that the "administration has entered into a joint marketing agreement" with "representatives and representation from Rockstar Games."
"It was a joint agreement between the Heat, Kaseya, the county and, essentially, Rockstar," Hudtwalcker added.
Commissioner Natalie Milian Orbis said she was surprised that the Miami Herald, which reported on the marketing deal, "knows that Miami-Dade County administrators met with GTA executives to discuss possible advertising campaigns, including Miami International Airport pretending to be Vice City Airport, wrapping a Metro Mover train and manhole covers in Miami-Dade County," and that she would have "appreciated more information."
However, Hudtwalcker said the "only agreement that's been signed is with the Heat arena," and that the county has "received the contribution" of "under a million dollars."
Sarah Perkel is a South Florida Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network's Florida Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sign at Miami's Kaseya Center ahead of GTA VI: ‘Welcome to Vice City'
