Some single drives in GTA history become iconic - the cable car climb in San Andreas, the long highway across the desert in GTA V, the subway tunnels in IV. The bridge route from Vice City out across the chain of islands looks set to become this game's equivalent.

We focus here on the route specifically - the drive itself - rather than the islands at the other end. For the islands, see the Florida Keys map page and the comparison with the real Keys.

The route in Trailer 2

Wide shots in Trailer 2 frame the bridges from above. A road extends from the southern edge of Vice City out across the water, hops across small islands, crosses longer water gaps via long bridges, and continues into the chain. The visual coding is the real Florida Keys - specifically the Seven Mile Bridge stretch and the smaller bridges around it.

Driving shots in the same trailer show the road from the driver's perspective - water on both sides, islands in the distance, a single road running through the centre of the frame. This is one of the most distinctive moments in either GTA 6 trailer.

What the real Keys route is

The real US Highway 1 runs from Miami south through the Florida Keys to Key West - 113 miles of bridges and small islands. The route is one of the most-driven scenic routes in North America. The Seven Mile Bridge near Marathon is the most famous stretch.

Rockstar will not be reproducing 113 miles. They never reproduce real distances. What they appear to be reproducing is the feel - a long, exposed drive over water, with the road as the only land underfoot for sustained stretches. That is achievable in a much shorter physical distance inside a game.

What the route is likely to feel like to drive

Open. Slow at first - leaving Vice City - then steady and fast across the bridges. Visibility long. Traffic light. Weather is going to matter on this route in a way it doesn't elsewhere on the map - the storm shots in Trailer 2 suggest dynamic weather, and a storm rolling across an exposed bridge is a different driving experience than a storm in the city.

Sound is going to matter too. The trailer's bridge frames are visibly quieter than the city frames. Empty road, water below, distant boats - a different audio environment to the city's traffic and pedestrian noise.

What the route is likely to be used for

Editorial speculation. Story missions involving the islands. Side content with a smuggling or trafficking coding. Recreational driving - the strongest single 'cruise' route on the map. Streamer set pieces. Photo mode. Possibly a marathon-style first-time-launch traversal.

What the route is unlikely to be: a primary commute path. Most of the gameplay map is north of the islands, not south of them, and the islands are likely a destination rather than a transit.

What we don't know yet

Total drive length. Number of islands the route crosses. Whether the bridges are interrupted by tolls or checkpoints. Specific real-Keys analogues for the named islands along the route (Key Largo, Marathon, Key West). Whether the route extends past the southernmost island into open water with boats only.

The Keys cluster is one of the more under-discussed parts of the map in pre-launch coverage. We expect it to surprise people on launch day, in a good way.