How will they close off the map?

I mean, we don't have any mountain ranges in Chicago. We have a lake front, but that only blocks off the east side. What do Ubi?

I really don't want them to implement some kind of killswitch where Aiden has some microchip in his head that explodes if he leaves a certain radius. Or cars explode after leaving the play area.

And now that I think about it, I can't really think of any open world games that don't take place on an island. RDR gets away with it since it doesn't have any means of flight, which means they can just surround the area in mountains and steppes.

That's a good question. It actually kinda bothered me that you're on an island in GTA V. Last time I checked Southern California is not an island, and even though it's San Andreas and not California, the way Trevor mentions "South San Andreas" at one point leads to me to believe that fictionally it's not actually an island, which makes it even dumber that it is in the game.

I know there aren't really any other options aside from either having your plane hit an invisible wall at the edge of the map or warn to turn around or you'll blow up. I guess I just would have preferred one of those options.

if you leave the borders of the city, it uploads your Facebook profile to Ubisoft's servers, and then they hit on your girlfriend.

THEY'RE WATCHING

@ll_exile_ll: Now that you mention it, I believe that's exactly how it worked in 3 (assuming you could even get the damn Dodo that far) and San Andreas. I don't remember flight in Vice City, but I definitely remember San Andreas just automatically turning you around (not that that stopped them from turning San Andreas into an island then, either).

@minipato: I believe the geographic progression in the game is related to turning on cell towers around the city that let you use your abilities there, since all the cool shit you can do is entirely dependent on connecting to the city-wide network. If so, it's good enough justification for me that you (your character) just wouldn't want to go "out of range" because you'd be suddenly powerless.

The Man drops a satellite on ya if you try to leave.

Computers.

@minipato: Considering the semi-dystopic atmosphere, I wouldn't be surprised if there is a twenty foot electric fence around the border of Chicago. To keep threats out and keep citizens in.

Considering Adian is a hacking wizard, I dont think an electric fence would do shit.

Sharks.

Easy, there isn't anything around Chicago, just say "oh that's indiana on the edge of the map" and no one will even try to go to the edge of the map cause who wants to go to Indiana :)

digital force field

A giant stone wall along with an electric fence and guards? Maybe it's practically a DMZ outside Chicago.

I'm just thinking of what they might do. I'm sure he could somehow get a plane and get out of there if he wanted, but it's a videogame with narrative conceits to reinforce gameplay.

Ha, if anything, the electric fence would be to keep the threats inside.

I guess that would make some sense. I can see some lady yell into Aiden's ear piece, "If you leave the area you can't use your hacking abilities!" And the screen distorts Assassin's Creed style and gets staticky.

Maybe just an invisible wall and when you hit it, the dude will just be like "i can't leave the city, i still have to ____"

They said there wouldn't be any flyable aircraft in the game. Most likely because they wouldn't know how to wall off the play area from aerial vehicles. Although flying aircraft seems like it would make the most sense to implement some killswitch or automatic override that forces it to turn around.

I actually hope we do see the more rural areas. Cornfields and farmlands would be a nice contrast to the high tech hackery.

roadblock

The game takes place in the animus.

heh. That's the "keep citizens in" part.

I think it would be pretty mind blowing if you walked off one side of the map and came out on the other with no story justification or explanation why this happens.

And also a helpfully quick way of getting around! :D

It'll probably be an island, like every other open world game.

By giving you (your character) plenty of reasons not to leave.

My guess is that if you attempt to leave, the game will make it seem open for you to go, but your character turns back whenever you try to leave and you'll probably hear his thoughts going "I can't leave. I have stuff to do."

I actually wouldn't have a problem with that. Invisible walls suck, but most of the reasons that developers come up with for not being able to leave are either silly or just as transparent as invisible walls.

"You're on an island!"

"Well, why can't I fly or boat away from here? Or ride across the bridge that presumably connects to the mainland? Why would anyone build a massive city on a tiny island anyway?"

They should make an open world game of The Truman Show. Then they could have perfectly good story justifications for having boundaries on the world.

Or just simply design the city so that no roads lead out of the play area. Probably the simplest and most elegant way of doing this.

"The Saints need you in Steelport... I mean Chicago"

Players will go crazy in their search for the exit; forget to eat and we'll eventually hear about it on the news I*m sure. "You aren't meant to leave the city, please discontinue your search! PLEASE!!"

I'm gonna guess good old police/military checkpoints.

Lava.

I'm fine with a "you can't go that way" message like in Oblivion and Skyrim. Invisible walls are not worse than the "LA is now an island" solution.

It's like a lumberjack match. Once you are outside of the "city" a bunch of oiled up buff men in speedos jump you and throw you back in.

Either the screen will fade to black, or Aiden will turn around and be like "I can't leave".

Those are my guesses... Or maybe it'll be radiation? We all know how much fun that was!

@minipato: Skyrim blatantly said "You cannot go this way" when you reached the end of a road on the map.

Just have the city end and have the nothingness stretch out forever... just like real Chicago!

The ghost of Richard J. Daley appears and teleports you back into the Loop.

Random, but I recall in the Scarface video game, it was water, and if you got too far away, you'd be eaten by a shark.

Maybe the SkiFree monster?

"The Watch Dogs need you in Chicago"

In LA Noire, they just blocked off the roads with buildings and prevented you from being able to drive out of the map. I expect they'll do the same for this game.

Construction everywhere!

Nanomachines.

That killswitch sounds like the most awesome way to handle it

The SkiFree monster.

Basically it's Under the Dome except instead of magical glass, the dome is made of the nanomachines from that book Prey.

We have a winner.

Don't understand the hatred for invisible walls. Unless it takes place on an island it's the best choice.

minefields

Snipers. Step foot out of the city and headshot.

The way I would of handled GTAV is the same way I would handle watchdogs, you allow them(the players) to drive off into factious highways or turnpikes, that lead to nothing and repeat as you are continuously and seamlessly transported a half way point in the same road, and make the wilderness outside of this road impassible as for other methods of travel you do the same thing, make a wall that seems like you are still moving when infact you aren't, as if you are flying into a invisible sheet of plastic that just keeps you in-position while giving-way for your movements.

This allows the player a more or less a better reality then creating an island or visible "hard" walls.

A military checkpoint/roadblock seems like the easiest and most obvious solution

There's nothing left! Chicago is all there is! When you step outside, you insta-die from all that radioactive waste.

Better yet, Chicago is all of Earth, so it just loops back to the east/south side.