To nobody's great surprise, Rockstar officially confirmed the future release of Grand Theft Auto VI last week, seeking to further build on its groundbreaking series that has revolutionised the gaming landscape since its third iteration began to raise eyebrows back in 2001. Since then, each game in the franchise has been eagerly anticipated by the gaming community, with high expectations. These have been met time and time again as each subsequent release has built upon and added to its predecessor in terms of content and gameplay quality. Since its inception, the series settings have been exclusively American, with the exception of the original Playstation game's London 1969 expansion. Whilst it has certainly been fun to take excursions to New York, 80s Miami and renditions of California/Nevada that incorporate Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas, it is long past due for the franchise to go international and feature a city or cities from elsewhere across the globe. From Australia to South Africa, there are multiple nations that offer highly viable possibilities, which will be analysed in turn over the next few pages.
Honourable American Mentions:
Despite the fact that the series is certainly overdue for a trip overseas, there are still a number of as-yet-untapped American locales that could prove quite feasible as settings, including the following: Chicago, Illinois - Despite its 'second city' moniker and the fact that it is ranked seventh on the Global Cities Index, Chicago is frequently overlooked by games in favour of its counterparts on the East and West coast. Though its criminal heyday was during the prohibition era of the 1920s and 30s (which would be an excellent setting for an L.A. Noire sequel), the modern-day city is still home to a number of crime hotspots that could serve as a backdrop for a GTA story. Las Vegas, Nevada - Though 'Sin City' did feature in San Andreas as 'Las Venturas', there's certainly an argument to have it feature as a standalone setting. The city's foundation - casinos - lend themselves perfectly to heists and other criminal activity, whilst the glitz and glamour that come with its reputation as the 'entertainment capital of the world' are ripe for parody. Baltimore, Maryland Two words - The Wire. Perhaps the most acclaimed television show of all time, The Wire ran for five seasons between 2002 and 2008, depicting the city of Baltimore through the eyes of individuals from all walks of life, including police, criminals, journalists, schoolchildren and dockworkers. Though a like-for-like retelling of its immersive story in game form would be somewhat lazy, it certainly wouldnt go unappreciated, as a GTA twist on proceedings would probably be as hilarious as the hipster version recently featured on Saturday Night Live.
To nobody's great surprise, Rockstar officially confirmed the future release of Grand Theft Auto VI last week, seeking to further build on its groundbreaking series that has revolutionised the gaming landscape since its third iteration began to raise eyebrows back in 2001. Since then, each game in the franchise has been eagerly anticipated by the gaming community, with high expectations. These have been met time and time again as each subsequent release has built upon and added to its predecessor in terms of content and gameplay quality. Since its inception, the series settings have been exclusively American, with the exception of the original Playstation game's London 1969 expansion. Whilst it has certainly been fun to take excursions to New York, 80s Miami and renditions of California/Nevada that incorporate Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas, it is long past due for the franchise to go international and feature a city or cities from elsewhere across the globe. From Australia to South Africa, there are multiple nations that offer highly viable possibilities, which will be analysed in turn over the next few pages. 