5. Sandbox Is, Like, Sooo 2001
Maybe it's the fact that I'm now an unspeakably old man, or perhaps it's got something to do with the proliferation of GTA-copycat games like Crackdown, InFamous and Saints Row, but sandboxes have stopped being inherently impressive. It's a little bit like CGI in movies: when you first saw the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park, it was impressive. But two decades on and now you know they can do literally anything on a movie screen, so you're left saying "what else have you got?" Rocket launcher-ing police cars and taking a baseball bat to pensioners has lost its luster over the years and, with GTA V, the emphasis is bound to be on this being the largest box of sand yet. But what do you really think when given a huge world map these days, and a mission somewhere at the exact opposite end of the universe? Let's be honest, it's likely something like "#@!$ this is going to take forever!" I'm not suggesting the world needs limiting - it's just that having a big, silly sandbox should no longer be the main draw to a game. If GTA V caves into fan demand for a return of planes to the series, then realistically the new San Andreas map is going to be colossal and - in terms of story and gameplay - things could get very silly indeed.