GTA 6 Could Have Been Set in These 6 Cities Instead of Vice City

GTA 6 is bringing players back to Vice City and the wider state of Leonida, but what if Rockstar Games had chosen a completely new location? Here are six cities that could make incredible settings for a future Grand Theft Auto game.

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It is safe to say that Grand Theft Auto VI is finally bringing players to one of the most iconic locations of all time created by Rockstar Games. Namely, the latest title in the open-world franchise will bring the gamers to Vice City, which has become famous for its neon-lit environment thanks to the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City released in 2002. This time around, however, the setting will go beyond the iconic city streets and will span through the entire fictional state of Leonida.

Certainly, for the long-time fans of the series, coming back to Vice City is something very thrilling. There is so much Rockstar could do with this location with the help of current technological advancements, much bigger open world, better interiors, enhanced NPCs and story. It seems that the Vice City of GTA VI will be totally unrecognizable from its predecessor of 20 years ago.

However, there is a unique point about Rockstar's recent policy regarding the Grand Theft Auto series: the developer always returns to the previously visited locations.

GTA 6 Is Returning to Another Familiar GTA Location

With respect to the GTA era of today, however, the trend cannot be ignored any longer. GTA IV took players back to Liberty City, which had earlier been featured in GTA III. In the sequel, Rockstar redesigned Liberty City and created a much more realistic rendition of it, yet the basic structure remained unchanged.

Similarly, GTA V reused Los Santos, which had first been introduced to players as part of GTA: San Andreas. In this case too, Rockstar enlarged the environment, creating an even bigger open world for the city. Now GTA VI is doing the same with Vice City.

It does not necessarily mean that the decision was a wrong one. There are many factors that can justify the choice made by Rockstar in this particular situation. Firstly, there is already established a very close link between the setting and the series itself. Moreover, the Florida-based setting gives numerous possibilities for satire, stories related to the criminal world, luxurious lifestyle, etc.

However, having been used to revisiting the same places like Liberty City, Los Santos, and Vice City, it becomes quite clear why the fans of the series wonder what else Rockstar can do with the new American location.

Having said that, here is a list of some other cities which could be perfect for a future Grand Theft Auto game.

Washington D.C. Could Give GTA a Political Twist

DC might be able to offer some of the most unique settings for Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series.

This American city is replete with landmarks and places of political and governmental importance that would allow Rockstar to have lots of material to use for their trademark satire. Think of the Grand Theft Auto story featuring corrupted politicians, governmental departments, lobbyists, private contractors, and strong criminal organizations operating in the shadows. The political context of this city would make it suitable for mission types like espionage and conspiracy theories.

Rockstar is notorious for not being too shy in satirizing American institutions and culture. In this way, a virtual city inspired by Washington could offer completely different style than the tropical Vice City and large Los Santos.

The problem would be to make sure that there is enough variation of landscape outside of the main political district. But if Rockstar were to make the region surrounding the city part of the whole fictional state, Washington could be used as the center of a truly unique open world.

Houston Could Be the Perfect GTA City

Houston, Texas could be one of the cities that are most naturally suited for a GTA game.

Instead of a city comprised largely of skyscrapers, Houston provides a blend of urbanized districts, highways, industrial areas, suburbs and large amounts of open space. This combination would allow for the creation of an open world which would have much more variety in terms of environments compared to the creation of yet another massive city environment.

This would also give Rockstar the chance to take a look at America from a perspective that isn't commonly represented in the mainline GTA franchise.

The highways of Houston could be used to enhance the gameplay, especially during chases and heists. Industrial districts could serve as a location for criminal enterprises, while rich districts could be used for heists and robbery.

Above all, Houston seems like a place where Rockstar could develop a unique setting instead of repeatedly recreating the existing GTA cities.

Philadelphia Could Bring a Different Kind of GTA Story

Another interesting example would be Philadelphia, which could also turn out to be a great location for a GTA game.

Philadelphia has its own distinct culture and a range of historical landmarks and modern architecture in its urban landscape, which would provide plenty of possibilities to create a diverse world that is not just another version of Los Santos.

The GTA game set in Philadelphia could also focus on the unique nature of the city and develop an interesting cast of characters, based on local conflicts, organized crime, and politics in Philadelphia's neighborhoods.

Moreover, there are numerous pop-cultural elements that Rockstar Games can play with when creating such a game. The company might use references to Rocky and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia without making a realistic depiction of the city itself but creating its fictional version.

All things considered, the choice of Philadelphia as a location would be very entertaining.

San Diego Could Expand the San Andreas Universe

As long as Rockstar wants to continue drawing its inspiration from San Andreas, it doesn't have to stick with Los Santos.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is well known for merging fictional representations of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas to create one huge state. This gives Rockstar plenty of opportunity to explore other territories of Southern California.

San Diego seems to be an obvious choice. While the city has all the elements typical for Los Angeles - beach zones, downtowns, suburbs, roads and military zones - San Diego has an altogether different character. As such, creating a GTA world inspired by San Diego can provide Rockstar with a way of combining a familiar Californian feel of the game while offering a new experience to players.

In addition, San Diego offers a unique combination of the wealthy coastal areas and the rough outskirts of the map that Rockstar can use to tell new stories in a familiar GTA manner.

Atlanta Could Give GTA a Fresh Cultural Identity

Another city which appears to be overdue for the GTA-style interpretation is Atlanta.

It is a unique cultural place, home to music business and having the mixture of densely built urban neighborhoods and suburban districts. Thus, it is perfect material for an open world crime game.

The game developers could easily base their storyline on the industry, crime syndicates operating in the city and on the changes of its neighborhoods. The juxtaposition of wealthy neighborhoods, business districts and suburban areas will provide great opportunities for various missions and side quests.

Moreover, the city offers something new to Rockstar compared to the previous settings. Instead of another coastal city, the developer has an opportunity to present unique cultural characteristics of Atlanta through various characters, music, jokes, etc.

Given the importance of the radio stations and music in GTA games, this setting would be especially attractive.

Chicago Would Be an Obvious GTA Setting

Next is Chicago, one of the most apparent locations to host a future title in the series Grand Theft Auto.

Chicago has just about everything that Rockstar needs in a city to create its next big crime story. The city has a distinctive skyline, famous neighborhoods, organized crime associations, a highway network, affluent areas and a long-standing culture related to American gangsters.

However, one aspect stands in the way of Rockstar using Chicago: Ubisoft has already released its game Watch Dogs with Chicago as its setting.

This shows the potential of the city as an open-world location, even if Rockstar could approach the concept in a very different way. For instance, while Watch Dogs was a heavy-hitter when it came to surveillance and hacking, GTA could feature organized crime, heists and satire as some of the main ingredients of the game.

In other words, the fact that another studio has taken Chicago doesn't have to be an impediment for Rockstar. Any company could take it and give the city a completely new spin.

The revisiting of Vice City does not have to be an issue. Rockstar has already shown on multiple occasions that when going back to an established location, it does not mean replicating the original game. The Liberty City of GTA IV, Los Santos of GTA V, and Vice City of GTA VI could all be unique takes on what came before. It is what happens after this that remains to be seen.

As soon as Grand Theft Auto VI transforms the Vice City yet again, Rockstar may need to think about moving the franchise somewhere else, where it has never been before. The new city may provide the same creativity that was available when creating Los Santos and Liberty City.

That may or may not happen in Grand Theft Auto VII, but Rockstar hasn't revealed the location of a future GTA title yet, so one might have to wait a very long time before this question is answered, taking into account the huge development periods the titles take.

For now, though, Vice City and the state of Leonida itself will be the destination. And if Rockstar manages to pull off Grand Theft Auto VI as planned, maybe there won't be any need to look for a new location in the foreseeable future.

When it comes to GTA 7, though, there's no doubt that everyone wants to see the developers go to some completely new and unexpected location.