ok hear me out. one thing san andreas got right was the map opening up bit by bit, unlocking a new chunk actually felt like something you earned. i want that back in VI, just not with a fake wall you bounce off.
so what if the prologue drops us into vice city right as a hurricane comes through. by the time the intro is done leonida is wrecked, roads caved in, whole districts sat under water. no invisible barriers anywhere, just rubble and floodwater in the way. and then as the story rolls on you watch the place get rebuilt around you and those zones come back online once you hit certain missions.
and no, i dont want a hard lock. cross the line if you fancy it, just make it not worth much. no side jobs out there, no strangers and freaks, maybe even give us an achievement for being stubborn about it 😅