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Display name history10. Buying and Selling Property
If I had to highlight one blatant feature missing from GTA IV it would be a sense of economy in the world. Yes, it’s nice to buy the odd pair of new trousers, some cool shades, and that funky hat that flies off your head as soon as you get in an open top car, but it was all cosmetic and didn’t really impact the game world around you. Remember when you could buy properties in San Andreas? Why not bring it back and take it one step further? The ability to buy houses, selected shops, and even banks, the latter of which generating revenue for you. That’s some basic economy, but why stop there? Why not have sale prices and income fluctuate depending on the state of crime in the area? That could add interesting repercussions when fighting off opposing criminals, or going around causing chaos in areas where you own places or opposing gangs own places.This could have the backlash in forcing the player to think before committing heinous deeds and maybe removing the brain dead joy of murderous rampage, but if implemented with care it could be worth it for the strategy.
9. Smarter Phones
One of the biggest new additions to GTA IV, the mobile phone! Shame it wasn’t quite as useful as the real thing, the inclusion of the mobile was smart in that it was easier to receive mission details, take part in outside activities, and even access multiplayer modes, but it could have been smarter.
Wouldn’t it be perfect if we received or could buy newer models at shops that included the internet and mobile emails instead of running to an internet cafe to check emails? Imagine surfing the ingame internet to buy new properties, it would be virtual convenience. The variety of models with varying cosmetic looks would be nice for personalisation too; I’m dying to see the GTA’s equivalent of the iPhone.
8. Realistic Cars
Making the handling of cars more realistic in GTA IV had a mixed bag of reception. Some loved it, others hated it, and some loved the idea but hated the outcome. The risk GTA IV took with being realistic was that you now automatically compare everything to real life, and having your car swerve like you’re on a persistent ice rink is not realistic.
To improve in GTA V keep the weighty handling and remove the skating simulator. But that’s not an exciting new feature, to make GTA V’s cars exciting I want microphones hooked up to Aston Martins, I want the option of cockpit driving, I want convertibles to be able to pull its hood over so I stop losing my favourite hat when driving.
7. Custom Cars
What happened to the modification of cars after San Andreas? GTA IV offered plentiful of realistic, real life imitating cars, and that was impressive, but the option to modify these cars to our liking would have been impressive even more so. I’m not just talking classic paint jobs; I’m talking the addition of new wheels, suspension and nitrous oxide. Maybe even custom paint jobs – imagine drawing a giant Pac-Man on the side of your hummer limo.
This should be essential in the multiplayer portion of the game where all you want to do is show off your unique car before having it blown by one overtly jealous user with a rocket launcher.
6. Campaign Co-op
A lot of games with co-op are a welcome but unnecessary addition, either being a separate mini—campaign or throwing an extra player in sandbox mode, its fun, for a while, but it would be exciting if an extra player could jump in to your campaign. It doesn’t have to wrap in to the game’s story directly, even if the extra person is explained as a hired gun or guard would be satisfactory.
Having another player in those annoying car chase sequences would be a life saver, literally in most cases. Actually thinking about clearing buildings and/or enemy riddled areas tactfully instead of relying on trial and error could be a welcoming addition. Or even just the simple idea sharing the enjoyable, roller coaster ride of a GTA campaign with a friend would be enjoyable – spot that I say ‘friend’ and not ‘stranger’ as I’m not too keen on having random players failing the mission and skipping cut scenes on purpose, that on the contrary would be enraging.
5. Competitive Multiplayer: Gang Warfare
Multiplayer in GTA IV had been a favoured inclusion but I, and many others, couldn’t help that it failed a little to hit its potential in persistence other than simply levelling up.
This may be slightly ambitious, but the addition of a mode that gave you the option to join permanent gangs that fought over the full map of Los Santos could be out of this world… as it is out of this world. How this would be implemented so that it was continuous overtime would be a challenge, but maybe producing something slightly more involved than killing opposing players and/or AI in and instead assigning players a random mission to take an opposing place could well be interesting.
. Planes, Trains and Tanks… Oh My!
Some of my fondest GTA memories have been in either a plane or a tank. Whether it is the challenge of getting the dodo plane to fly more than 3 minutes before plummeting straight into the water in GTA 3 or jumping in a tank, applying the low gravity cheat, turning the turret backwards and firing myself to space in GTA Vice City, it was mad yet highly enjoyable. With GTA IV’s change in style to practicality and realism we lost some of that madness, although that doesn’t mean we can’t have the option of being able to jump in and utilise these vehicles.
And don’t forget the train, yes, you’re able to use the train in GTA IV, but it was pretty much the slowest method of travel (other than walking). You were able to hijack the train in the original GTA on PC; to bring that back in GTA V would at least be reminiscent. The option to be able to board a plane in GTA V to get places and then, in case of an emergency situation retaining that state of realism, using a parachute to jump out. And then on top of this, an unlockable tank at the end of the game, as everyone knows the epitome of madness in any GTA game is jumping in a tank and unleashing destruction upon the world. Sorry, for the sake of realism, it’ll be used for transport only.
3. Single Player Jobs
This feature had essentially been implemented in GTA 3 with the ambulance, taxi, and police car missions, but they were very trivial and essentially pointless later on in the game as money was so plentiful. In GTA IV this dwindled down to just police based missions.
Bringing a bigger variety of missions back, such as ambulance, taxi and fire-fighter work back, but design them to be more involved so they’re not just collect and drop missions. E.g. for the fire-fighter missions allow the player to actually proceed through a burning building putting out fire and saving civilians. Make them useful by also including the buying and selling feature so you’re not just using money for purchasing weapons.
Or if this seems too orderly and you want to stick to your criminal ways and stay true to the game name, why not pursue gang oriented missions of stealing cars and selling them on or buying and selling weapons/drugs to other criminals. Remember some of those main missions from previous GTA’s of dangerous, back ally drug deals that were just bound to go wrong? Include these as part of criminal side missions.
This is just finding ways of making the activities outside of the main story worthwhile doing.
. Side-mission Campaigns: Rival Gangs
This had been a focus in GTA: San Andreas. Remember those colour coded map points where you had to clear an area of gang members before converting it over? It was essentially just a mindless killing spree. To reintroduce this in GTA V but also involve it with a narrative driven power struggle too could be more involving for the player.
I can see having 3-4 gangs to choose from, having missions of assassination, stealing, and imposture, and each string of missions with its own ending and/or reward for completing them. Choosing a particular gang could also have all sorts of repercussions on the world, giving access to different weapons, houses and/or clothes for the main character.
1. Customisable Main Character
Instead of just clothes changes, maybe introducing haircuts, glasses, facial hair as well could make for a more unique experience. But then this could also be cleverly worked into the game with missions that require disguises, changing clothes/appearances to avoid police or being inducted into gangs.
And these are just 10 examples; there are plenty of other big reasons on why we could be excited for GTA V, whether it be its probable well woven story, more convincing AI or even how the setting (Los Santos) will be shaped and structured. And although it’s frustrating that we don’t know for sure whether any of the listed features will be fulfilled or not we can reside in the knowledge that not actually knowing what GTA V is can keep us anticipated for its big reveal, whenever that will be.
