I recently dived back into the sandy landscapes of Assassin's Creed Origins. The game is undeniably massive, with a huge map.
Yet, as I was walking through the deserts and swamps between the towns, something felt off.
Despite the landscape been so big, the spaces between significant areas seemed hollow—almost as if they were merely stretches of space to help fill out the game so they can say "look how big our map is."
It got me thinking about one of my favorite games: GTA Vice City. The map isn't massive by today's standards, but each corner of it is brimming with life and details (even if they are low poly).
I could go inside a shopping mall, buy clothes, and genuinely feel like part of a living, breathing world. It felt full, alive, and each section had a purpose.
Now, with the news that Grand Theft Auto 6 is touted to have a map twice the size of its predecessor, GTA 5, It made me thin like, wouldn't it be better to have a map say the same size, but make it waaaaaay more accessible.
You could go into every home, go into shopping centers, cafes, pubs, restaurants, bowling alleys and even go to every floor of the sky scrapers that you see.
I keep hearing GTA 6 news suggesting a map that's set to be twice as big as GTA 5. Obviously this is just all speculation and rumors but it doesn't sound that far off.
On paper, this sounds impressive, but it could also be something that turns out to be a bit boring in the long run. I'd rather developers focus on making the existing spaces more interactive and accessible.
Imagine being able to enter buildings, homes, and skyscrapers. How about interacting with the environment in a way that affects gameplay and narrative?
These elements would contribute more to the gaming experience than simply doubling the size of the world without filling it with meaningful content.
I just feel like bigger maps should not come at the cost of meaningful interactions and rich details that make a game world immersive. After all, what's the point of having a sprawling world if it feels like a beautiful but empty canvas where there's not a lot to do?
The fun in the maps comes from been able to discover hidden areas, Easter eggs, little gems, hideaways and the sense of a world that is full of life and fun stuff to do, not just its size.
I just kind of hope future games, including GTA 6, consider the beauty and depth that can be found in a smaller, yet more interactive maps with more accessibility. That's my 2 cents.
