Grand Theft Auto V

[Hottentot]

Originally Posted by Dowly

Open world is what I like about GTA.

Yeah, that. It was specifically impressive in 4. The city became somehow familiar place that you learned to know by its landmarks, streets and atmosphere. And when the same setting was used in the expansions, it felt like coming home.

But the city alone wasn't all. I also liked that it felt like a living place. People walking around, car crashes, occasional fist fighting, hot dog stands...
Some could say it was generic, but to me it created a good enough illusion of a populated city. OK, so I didn't follow a random pedestrian to see if he wakes up in morning, goes to work, visits a grocery store on the way back home and watches TV for the rest of the evening. So what? The world kept me occupied with better stuff to do. Cruising, listening to music, just fooling around with the physics engine (who hasn't rammed a moped with a fire truck at least once?) and admiring the details.

Edit: so again. It's not one single thing. It's the combination of multiple things that work well enough. I wish such balance could be found in all the other games too.