What would you like to see in the next Grand Theft Auto?

Grand Theft Auto VI is a long way away but that doesn’t stop me thinking about what I would like to see in the next instalment of Rockstar Games open world crime sim. I could write a list with a hundred things I’d like to see in Grand Theft Auto VI but that would end up being too long and no one would read it. So I have whittled it down to six given that the next main instalment would be GTA VI.

Keep in mind that this list is subjective and what is mentioned might not be what you personally want. I hope this list starts a discussion on what people would like to see in the inevitable Grand Theft Auto VI. Now with all that said, let’s get into it.

 

6. More enterable buildings

Grand Theft Auto has always had big cities to explore with missions and activities scattered throughout. There are hundreds of buildings to walk and drive past but only a few are enterable. Whilst it is impossible to have every single building explorable in a map the size of GTA V’s, having more explorable buildings will help make the city feel more realistic and believable.

As Grand Theft Auto and Rockstar Games in general now try to make their single-player offerings as realistic, having more enterable buildings and explorable interiors will go a long way in making a city feel more alive. A good example of this working is the Yakuza series. The maps in Yakuza are small but are densely packed with many things to do and many interiors explore. The city of Kamurocho in Yakuza truly feels alive and I think adding more interiors to the cities in Grand Theft Auto not only make them look and feel bigger but will also keep them fresh players explore.

 

5. More single player content for online mode

I like GTA Online, I like it a lot but there’s one thing I think Rockstar need to work on in the next game and that is to make more online content playable to the solo player.

GTA Online has a huge amount of content for people to play and experience and the updates that Rockstar have done since its launch have been fantastic. One of the biggest and best things they have done are Heists, which are co-operative affairs and offer tense gameplay and big rewards. There is a problem here though, the heists are only playable in co-op which can be a pain for some people. Heists (with the exception of the first one) are co-op only and require four players. This means that if I want to do a heist, I have to organise a time and a date with my friends who have the game to do one.  With each one of us having different jobs and schedules, playing heists with my friends is virtually impossible.

I know what some might say, why not play with random people online? I could but how am I supposed to know if they are good or reliable. What if they make me have a smaller percentage of the cut? Playing with friends eliminates all of these troubles but the problem there, is when I can play with my friends. Making heists and other co-op content playable with AI taking the place of the other players would make them much more accessible for solo players and for those that don’t have a lot of friends that play GTA Online.

 

4. Less grinding for GTA Dollars for online mode

In Grand Theft Auto Online you can buy weapons, clothing, property and vehicles but they all require money. The currency used in GTA Online is GTA Dollars. The currency can be earned in-game through missions and activities or you can buy them with real money with via Shark Cards.

I understand that things in-game cost money, that is obvious but some things like a really fast sports car can cost more than $1 million GTA dollars. There’s a golden jet plane that costs $10 million GTA Dollars which is absurd. Only the hardcore player base will get these, the people who play GTA Online every day. The casual player has no chance to get these unless they get the Shark Cards. I will never touch the Shark Cards as the items that can be bought are not worth spending real money on.

There are two ways Rockstar can cure the tediousness of grinding for GTA Dollars, one way is by increasing the amount of money earned from missions and activities. The other way is to reduce the cost of items in GTA Online. Doing either one of these will keep more casual players coming back as they will be able to earn money to get things they want without the hassle of a strenuous grind.

The question here though, is will Rockstar do these changes? We know that the Shark Cards are very profitable for Rockstar Games so if changes are made, I don’t expect them to be massive. Still, one can hope.

3. Not as much wilderness as GTA V

GTA V’s map is huge. It’s a massive playground for a would-be criminal but there’s a quite a bit of it that isn’t used often, in single-player or multiplayer. In GTA Online, most of the players in the session are usually roaming around the city of Los Santos, Sandy Shores or Paleto Bay. The hills and mountains that make up a large portion of GTA V’s map aren’t used that much and that’s mainly because there’s nothing to do there.

It’s nice to have a bit of diversity when it comes to locations throughout the game’s world. If it was all city, it could get boring if there wasn’t things to do or things that catch your eye and the same goes for the wilderness. The game world needs to be done right.  I know that I’m being negative about GTA V’s map but it is fun roam around, Los Santos is a hectic metropolis compared to the more laid back locations of Paleto Bay and Sandy Shores, I like the contrast between them. I just wish that there were bigger or more urban areas and the wilderness wasn’t empty.

In Grand Theft Auto VI, I hope that Rockstar either add more urban locations and make the rural areas more fun to explore and have more of a use rather than just being a pretty backdrop.

 

2. Vice City

It has been many years since we have had a Grand Theft Auto set in Vice City and I think it is time we go back to the much beloved city. Vice City, a place inspired by Miami and when compared to other cities in the GTA series, it stands out when it comes to its design and overall look. Whilst Vice City has that urban and high-rise look that other GTA cities have, it has a tropical feel to it that no other city has.

Rockstar Games being the geniuses that they are will undoubtedly know that they could play on the logo if GTA VI is set in Vice City. For example, GTA VIce City. It’s a small thing yes but it would be great for marketing.

We’ve only been to Vice City in during a 1980’s setting so a modern take on Vice City would be very interesting to see.

 

1. Only 1 playable character for single-player

This one is definitely subjective but hear me out. I like idea of having three playable protagonists in the single-player. At the time it had never been done before, in an open world crime game anyways. GTA V tried something new and for the most part it worked. The three characters; Franklin, Michael and Trevor all had their own personalities, dress sense and abilities. It’s a cool idea that many thought wouldn’t work but it did. That said however, it did come at the cost of something, a strong narrative.

GTA V’s story was a complete 180 in terms of tone when compared to GTA IV’s. Grand Theft Auto IV’s story was very serious and quite heavy whereas GTA V’s was more lighthearted and didn’t take itself too seriously. GTA IV focused on one character, Nico Bellic and I know opinions are divided on Nico but I liked him, he was different to the protagonists that came before. The story for IV was slow to start off but it picked up and turned into a gritty and intense crime drama and I enjoyed it.

Grand Theft Auto V didn’t have just one character to focus on, it had three. Rockstar had to develop an engaging story that included all three protagonists, make them connect with each other all whilst giving them enough depth so that we would care about them the same way we did with CJ or Tommy Vercetti. Rockstar nearly managed to pull it off flawlessly but the story didn’t grip me like GTA IV’s or San Andreas.

The reason I think that the GTA V’s story wasn’t as compelling is because Rockstar had to build a story around three characters instead of focusing on just one. I like the three playable anti-heroes idea but it didn’t help in telling an engaging story. If Rockstar decide to stick with three playable characters for future instalments then I wouldn’t be against it, I just hope they improve the storytelling next time. However, if they went back to just playing as one protagonist so they could tell a more compelling tale, then I would be happy as Rockstar can create some absolutely amazing stories.

 

What would you like to see in the inevitable Grand Theft Auto VI? Let me know in the comments below or on Twitter – @ThatGreenDude95