Lioshenka Posted August 6, 2007 Share Posted August 6, 2007 OK, in this topic I just want to express how much I appreciate all the efforts Rockstar applied when creating SA. We all know that SA is small (it is large, but obviously not large enough for 3 megapolises, countryside and a desert. I want to show some tricks R* used, which can also be useful for the mod creators. Notice how the skyline makes it feel that we are in a large breathing city! Hidden roads, passages and alleys, not just here but all over San Andreas which are fun to explore. Curved beach and a siluet of a countryside are great. One of the most used features - hills. Notice, how clever they are used - on one side of them there is a living bursting city, and on another... ...quite countryside town. Cross-country roads maybe not used often, or not used at all by us, but taking one of them changes the way we see the surroundings completely. Though there is a tarmac road just meters away from it, you cant see it because of small bushes and small hills, or the difference of height os them. Here is how hills are used in Los Santos again. We dont see those places very often, usually speeding past them at 200 mph. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lioshenka Posted August 6, 2007 Author Share Posted August 6, 2007 (edited) Cross-country-roads. The motorway is just up the hill, but we dont see it. The areas of water produce great spectacular views with some forest in the distance which makes the game look bigger, though the forest can be only a dozen of trees. The trees placed on top of the hills create that image of the endless forest, middle of fckuking nowhere, nice, clean air. Curved bank and the hill in the distance create the impression of large city. One of the biggest hills. On one side of it - agricultural countryside and farms, on another - forbidden forest Skyline again. Many same looking houses, though there are no same models used, but as they all look similar to each other and are grouped in small blocks, producing large number of small roads it makes the map more complicated hence visualy enlarging the size of the city. Edited August 6, 2007 by ˸øåíüêà Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lioshenka Posted August 6, 2007 Author Share Posted August 6, 2007 (edited) Use of similar houses again. The fog covers the town of Bayside Marina and the bay completely, wiping all the surroundings away and creating the illusion of the endless road behind and in front of you... Hills of the left... Classic use of them! Imagine if we were able to see the sea on that side, the impression of the big mapwould be ruined. Large plain turns from the fields into burning desert, although we can not see the exact border where it happens. Rocks and canyons separate us from the outside world, leaving us surrounded by ghost town. The road, by the way, is only couple of meters behind me. the famous Nevada road, which go to the horizon. It doesnt llead anywhere, but it is obvious that R* were trying to create that impression of the endless road. Notice how close military base (restricted area!!!) is located to the city of Las Venturas. The hills do their job perfectly. Similar houses again. Wide motorways separate centers of the city and the industrial suburbs. Notice how unrealistically narrow is the hill. It was made to hide the sea away from us and to create the impression that there is more desert behind it. Edited August 6, 2007 by ˸øåíüêà Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lioshenka Posted August 6, 2007 Author Share Posted August 6, 2007 The quarry is located below the surface of earth, and is surrounded by small hills. When you are approaching the quarry, you can not see it and the impression of the desert is made. And when you are inside - you dont realise that you are near the bursting city and the desert at the same time. Last one. I am going to play GTA 4 with radar turned off... It makes the game times bigger! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bagga rabbit Posted August 6, 2007 Share Posted August 6, 2007 nice pictorial tour... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tommy vs. claude Posted August 6, 2007 Share Posted August 6, 2007 wow! i would of never thought of any of that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lambo128 Posted August 6, 2007 Share Posted August 6, 2007 (edited) nice pictorial tour... Just use single periods!!! ANYWAYS, nice job, I noticed the smart things rockstar has done with making the game feel big. Edited August 6, 2007 by lambo128 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HolyGrenadeFrenzy Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Yes, some of these are definitely visual guides for the game. However in some ways Cali is abit like that only BIGGER! The Exceptions are that it isn't an Island and the proportions are vastly larger in Cali and the ratios are all scaled down even the lanes of traffic are incorrect but what do you expect from a game that is still growing each new version of it. It is still bigger than any other GTA to date although GTAIV will definitely raise the bar on many things GTA SA will be a classic for some time. It is very cool that you put this up for some idea space for the modding community though and you did notice quite a few of the tricks. I would like to see a method of linking future GTA's with connecting expansions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfrawley888 Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Where is the Nevada road in that pic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tommy vs. claude Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Where is the Nevada road in that pic? hes on it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kobe101 Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Nice van btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfrawley888 Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Where is the Nevada road in that pic? hes on it I mean on the map Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tommy vs. claude Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 probaly the road to area 69 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magic_Al Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Those are very good examples of the brilliance of the San Andreas map. Having a wide variety of small areas arranged so there's an illusion of endlessness from any vantage point seems impossible, but Rockstar was very successful at it. Transitions between areas are well done too. It's only when you get in a plane that the map seems too much like a Hollywood backlot with things that don't belong together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manofpeace Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 I should use that van. Yes, some of these are definitely visual guides for the game. However in some ways Cali is abit like that only BIGGER! The Exceptions are that it isn't an Island and the proportions are vastly larger in Cali and the ratios are all scaled down even the lanes of traffic are incorrect but what do you expect from a game that is still growing each new version of it. It is still bigger than any other GTA to date although GTAIV will definitely raise the bar on many things GTA SA will be a classic for some time. It is very cool that you put this up for some idea space for the modding community though and you did notice quite a few of the tricks. I would like to see a method of linking future GTA's with connecting expansions. Agreed. People could mod SA to make it bigger or something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lioshenka Posted August 7, 2007 Author Share Posted August 7, 2007 (edited) Those are very good examples of the brilliance of the San Andreas map. Having a wide variety of small areas arranged so there's an illusion of endlessness from any vantage point seems impossible, but Rockstar was very successful at it. Transitions between areas are well done too. It's only when you get in a plane that the map seems too much like a Hollywood backlot with things that don't belong together. Yeah, if there werent any planes in the game it would have seemed even more bigger... As for myself, I was really amazed by the use of hills, because when I started the game I was quite often lost in the countryside and did not understand how I managed to get so far from the city. Only later I realised that the city was just over the hill And yeah, the different areas of Cali are represented great, though they are scaled down to the impossible minimum, but the map designer... I wish i can give him some BTW here is a Nevada-like road. The funny thing is, that road doesnt lead straight to the army gates, but goes aroud in circle to double its lenght, and the first bit actually goes to horizon if you drive from Lil Prob Inn. For those of you who wonders where I got that van from - it is a mod to which i have made a skin, and it is not finished yet, but when it will be, I will post a link. Edited August 7, 2007 by ˸øåíüêà Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[email protected] Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 i was expecting something else reading the thread title but nice finds anyway, its true how the countryside and the city are so close to each other but yet when you're in either the city or the countryside, you dont even notice the other being near you... if im in the city, the landscape makes me think the countryside is miles away and yet its not. Close to each other, yet really subtle resulting in larger looking cities and landscapes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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