GTA 6 Map: 3 changes to map design that Rockstar Games could make

Rockstar Games' crown jewel and one of the biggest gaming franchises in the world, GTA, has excelled by providing players fantastic open-world playgrounds. The GTA franchise has been instrumental in making the open-world genre of games the industry juggernaut that it is today.

If not for the GTA franchise, the scale of the Triple-A game would not be on the level that it is today. Today, Triple-A game budgets easily cross the $100 million thresholds. It is truly a testament to how big games have gotten over the years, and how far the GTA franchise has come in terms of size and scale.

The open-world map in the GTA games has always been the subject of awe and admiration as Rockstar Games have been able to craft some of the most iconic maps in gaming.

While the success of the franchise doesn't necessarily beget a massive change in the map design, there's always room for innovation. Here, we take a look at some ideas for the map design Rockstar Games could potentially look into.

3 changes to map design Rockstar Games could make in GTA 6

1) Multiple open-world locations connected through fast travel

While one big open-world map with zero loading screens and transitions is the perfect way to go about making an immersive open-world, there are some games that have had multiple open-world maps through which the player can travel.

For example, The Witcher 3 does this extremely well, with Skellige, Velen and Novigrad being available to the player to travel to and from. The transition was quite seamless but could be improved.

Rockstar Games could add this feature, which involves the player being able to take a flight between different cities or even countries, in GTA 6. This would be akin to something from Godfather Part II (the game), where the player could take a flight to and from cities.

2) Fully realised interiors

While the outdoors are truly what shines in any GTA game, a fully realised and well-developed interior also goes a long way in making a game feel immersive. Apart from scripted sequences in missions and well-made interiors in other locations, there is a lot of room for improvement.

Rockstar Games could experiment with an extra dimension to the games by adding well-built interiors that serve a larger purpose. The possibilities of combat sequences within interiors are endless. Even something akin to GTA Online's interiors being used for management sims is also a great option.

3) Destructible environments

This would be, by far, the biggest change to the open-world design Rockstar Games could bring to the franchise. Destructible environments are always appreciated in a game as it feels that much more gratifying to see a building being ripped to shreds with a rocket launcher.

While we're not expecting to see full-sized skyscrapers coming down in the games, smaller structures could be made prone to gunfire and other explosives. There has been some level of destructibility in the GTA games but Rockstar Games could still ramp things up significantly.