Satellite Navigation

[uzi 9mm]

The sat-nav in IV was a great add-on that many may have disagreed on, but to me was a necessity since without it I'd be constantly pausing to check the map and work out a route. But it was quite basic compared to what sat-navs are really able to do.

 

Before setting off you should be able to use it the same way you can with the cell phone, by bringing it up on-screen for more control. Then when you drive it would work as it does in IV.

 

1. Like in reality, you should be given the option of planning either the fastest route, which will use main roads and keeping you on the open roads, avoiding the back streets. Shortest route, which will calculate the shortest route possible mileage-wise, which may work out as less road to drive through, but may take longer since you'd be always stopping, chucking corners compared to the fastest route which won't take you on back streets until the point where you're nearing your destination. And lastly avoid motorways for those long distance journeys where you could use the highway, but this option would avoid all highways and take you through the city roads.

 

2. We should be given the distance of point A to B all the time whether in miles or kilometers, it would help to know exactly how far your journey is and even to compare it to real life journeys you'd make, this would be a neat option.

 

3. Avoid certain roads, on a real sat-nav, once you've set your destination (or way point), you can go on plan route 'avoid road', this will bring up a list of each road you will go on to reach your destination for the first to the last, you should then be able to choose which roads to avoid and the satnav will calculate an alternative route, this is another neat feature that would be cool to mess around with, especially if on some missions you'd have to avoid certain roads due to closures, or even gangs waiting in that part to kill you, you could swiftly take another route.

 

Just by having these three extra features we can have a bit more control over how the city is navigated, since if you always have to travel on the same route you get bored of the same surroundings and this would alter that and even get the player to learn more possible routes and eventually you wouldn't even need to use it as much.

 

And of course, you can pre-set the setting, so you don't have to set a route to your preferences every single time, once you have your preferred settings selected, they would stay that way unless you want to change it which would mean bringing it up like the cell phone to alter the settings.

[Official General]

Yo, OP get a grip, it's only a bloody video game.

 

There is no need for all that extra baggage. The satnav was a real nice new feature in GTA IV, and I enjoyed having it, but the most important thing was that it was not too complicated and drawn-out. That is what made having the satnav fun, the simplicity of it. Little nice features like that in GTA do not need to be so sophisticated and complicated, that could potentially ruin the fun in it all.

 

Keep that stuff simple.

[iroc_mitch]

I'll hop on board with the Fastest Route idea. I got so tired of left, right, left, right, etc. when I'd look at the map and realize I could drive 3 blocks one way then turn and drive 3 more blocks and be in the same place.

[Lewligan]

Yo, OP get a grip, it's only a bloody video game.

 

There is no need for all that extra baggage. The satnav was a real nice new feature in GTA IV, and I enjoyed having it, but the most important thing was that it was not too complicated and drawn-out. That is what made having the satnav fun, the simplicity of it. Little nice features like that in GTA do not need to be so sophisticated and complicated, that could potentially ruin the fun in it all.

 

Keep that stuff simple.

Have to agree with this...

 

OP, the ideas you have stated would make the whole thing way too complex.

No need to make it that complicated - what we got in IV was fine and it did the job.

[Smith John]

Loved the introduction of the sat-nav in IV, worked well in RDR too, so yes would love for it's inevitable return.

[Raynos]

Hmm.. A bit complex, what are you suggesting OP however, No a bad idea.

 

Like an earlier poster said, The option to pick fastest/shortest route would be handy.. though.. Everyone would simply pick "Fastest" What would be the point of picking Shortest unless you've got fuel expenses to consider or diesel taxes etc?

 

Still be handy to just have as an option that you set once, not every time you need to mark a way point.

Options menu, Under GPS, Route Selection, Fastest/Shortest.

[Wayne Daniels]

Am I the only one who doesn't use the nav? I just look at the blip and head in that direction. Way more fun.

[GTALegacy]

It's funny because IV added bits & pieces of realism, fans now want the series to be a simulator - LOL.

 

I agree with the others who say an advanced GPS is not necessary given the ARCADE experience that makes up the majority of GTA.

 

Besides, if you play any game enough, you get to know the virtual environment like the back of your hand and don't even need the GPS after a while.

 

I used the GPS in IV to find places for the missions, but after that if you just drive around enough you'll soon realize the route the GPS presents is often more complicated and longer than ones you can figure out on your own. This is true in real life as well, so it's not just a game limitation.

 

Plus, part of the fun of GTA is those wild and crazy police chases where you just have to think on your feet e.g. out drive and out run the police, or head for a Pay N' Spray.

[jamieleng]

At least real world technology has advanced enough that the mini map is something a lot of us have on smartphones.

 

I'm not sure how to improve the sat nav.

[Colonel_Buttfuck]

It's great when you're chased by someone and have to get to a certain location fast, I hate to pause in action sequences!

[Official General]

Besides, if you play any game enough, you get to know the virtual environment like the back of your hand and don't even need the GPS after a while.

 

 

Exactly

 

So I have no idea why the OP wants to add a whole bunch of complicated, over-the-top, sophisticated stuff to what is already a nice, simple and easy-to-use feature.

 

There is nothing wrong with the satnav in GTA IV, it should make a return to in GTA V just as it is.

[DS 17]

*ding* *ding* no satellite reception ...

I liked the GPS like it was in IV. Hope there will be traffic jams so it will calculate the best / fast / cheapest route.

[Carmelo]

GPS system in IV was as good as it needs to be, no need to ass to it.

 

In other games they can be awful. The GPS system in Sleeping Dogs is terrible.

[Mig10]

Yo, OP get a grip, it's only a bloody video game.

 

There is no need for all that extra baggage. The satnav was a real nice new feature in GTA IV, and I enjoyed having it, but the most important thing was that it was not too complicated and drawn-out. That is what made having the satnav fun, the simplicity of it. Little nice features like that in GTA do not need to be so sophisticated and complicated, that could potentially ruin the fun in it all.

 

Keep that stuff simple.

nothing to add.

[Ana Belial]

After about 2 weeks or so in IV, I remembered the map layout and every street.

I just had to look at the destination once, and I knew the quickest way to get there by memory.

[marrecar]

I didn't like IV navigation because it would always show me the longest route, especially when one-way streets are nearby. So my favorite is the blimp version. It may not be efficient but it would give me the chance to explore the map fully, unlike the IV where you'd go basically back and forth.

[jamieleng]

I didn't like IV navigation because it would always show me the longest route, especially when one-way streets are nearby. So my favorite is the blimp version. It may not be efficient but it would give me the chance to explore the map fully, unlike the IV where you'd go basically back and forth.

That's because the sat-nav obeys the laws of the road. It's up to you to find the alleway, one way & stunt jumping over a house shortcuts for yourself.

[Chukkles]

I'll hop on board with the Fastest Route idea. I got so tired of left, right, left, right, etc. when I'd look at the map and realize I could drive 3 blocks one way then turn and drive 3 more blocks and be in the same place.

Well thats just common sense, you need that for real life sat navs too.

You can be pointed down the wrong way of a one way street in london if your not careful and not using common sense with a sat nav.

[Racecarlock]

The only improvement that I like is the "Fastest route\shortest route" option. Too many times has my GPS recommended I drive all the way around a block to my destination that's 5 feet from my car just so I'll arrive there going along with traffic, rather than against it.

[Isuck100%]

I recently played Sleeping Dogs and I hated to see how the developers had added the floating arrows directing you toward your destination in addition to the GPS trail on your mini-map. I hope Rockstar does not add that to GTA V because it really kills the immersion for me. Sure, it is fine during a street race (almost essential), but I do not want it during normal gameplay.

[mubd]

Too much information. A toggle between the fastest/shortest route should be enough, so I take a freeway rather than going along backstreets. I'd like more info than "turn left" or "turn right" in the voice navigation as well.

[Chukkles]

The only improvement that I like is the "Fastest route\shortest route" option. Too many times has my GPS recommended I drive all the way around a block to my destination that's 5 feet from my car just so I'll arrive there going along with traffic, rather than against it.

Read my post above yours.

There doesn't need to be any major changes to it, not even fastest/shortest route.

Real satnavs f*ck up just as much.

[JoeJoeMcTwist]

I'm personally gonna take GPS nav off as soon as I put in GTAV. I've developed a dislike for GPSs in games and in real life. When you use one, you end up not knowing how you got there, you just follow the line like a string, praying it gets you there. My job requires me to work in different locations, and whenever I've used a GPS in the past, it took me like 5 times to learn the route. Using a map, I knew the route off by heart after the first drive. I've realized that GPSs are for lazy people.

 

Be a man... Use a map.

[theworldfamous]

Some of these ideas are going a bit far. When adding options like these you have to make sure they don't get in the way for people that don't want to use them. But one simple addition I would like is the ability to just set multiple waypoints. Click LS on the map to enter waypoint mode, A = waypoint one, B = waypoint two, and so on. That way you can choose whatever route you want. If you want to go somewhere via another point, you just set the last waypoint where you want to go and use 1,2 and 3 to plan stops or alternative routes along the way.

[uzi 9mm]

Sorry I haven't been online and forgotten about this topic.

 

Remember the options for the sat nav would only come into play if you decide to bring it up on-screen, like how you tap the up button on the d-pad to bring the cell phone up, you could (for eg.) press the down button to bring up to sat nav or something. Even by pausing the game but that would get in the way, it's more simple the first way.

 

And yes, I know the satnav is hated by some, who even wish to switch it off completely in some cases, but I find it very useful, sure they send you down dead end streets and into 'no entry's' in real life and even send some idiots into lakes or rivers but to me it's a gadget that is extremely handy, as long as you know how to drive and don't put your life dependency on it. In the game it's nice to be able to follow it to get around because some people don't need to memorise an artificial game world.

 

The extra features would be a plus, I know I went into detail a bit but complicated? I think not, it's actually pretty basic stuff. I hope my explanations didn't baffle people, but I've only given just 3 different extra modes (fastest route, shortest route, and avoid highway/motorways) you can set the sat nav to even if by using the pause menu, if that's how some would define something as simple as that, then maybe my view of the words complex or even sophisticated (wow) is very different to yours.

Edited September 17, 2012 by uzi 9mm

[BillPatt]

Although I like the idea I think it would be a little too much.