The enhanced night environments look amazing compared to previous versions. The darker atmosphere creates much better immersion than what we had before where everything seemed too bright even during moonless evenings.
This improvement could bring more variety to how we play and make certain nights feel more atmospheric. People worried about visibility issues should remember that weather systems and lunar cycles typically create different lighting conditions, so not every night would be completely dark.
Gameplay could benefit too, with nighttime becoming more strategic for stealth missions and heists. Hopefully we get better sneaking mechanics similar to what older games offered. Equipment like flashlights and vision gear would actually serve a purpose.
The darker setting also opens up possibilities for creepy moments like those swamp areas from the western game.
I’m really hoping the darkness actually matters for gameplay this time. Too many games promise realistic night lighting but then you can still see everything perfectly fine. If they really commit to making nights properly dark, it could totally change how missions feel. Just need to make sure the AI reacts properly to light sources too.
Honestly the lighting changes have me more hyped than most of the other features they’ve shown. I’ve always felt like games chicken out when it comes to actual darkness because they’re afraid players will complain. But some of my best gaming memories are from those tense moments where you’re squinting at shadows trying to figure out if that’s an enemy or just scenery.
Night raids are gonna be so much better if they actually make it challenging to spot enemies. Really curious how they’ll balance the flashlight mechanics without making it annoying.