Grand Theft Auto IV, released in 2008, was developed by Rockstar North with a team of over 1,000 across several studios. Producer Leslie Benzies estimated its development budget exceeded 100 million dollars, making it one of the most expensive games ever made. The setting, Liberty City, is based on New York, but the team deliberately avoided a precise recreation. Around 60 to 70 employees travelled to New York for research, riding with former police officers who had worked the beat in Washington Heights. The team photographed the city heavily, studied architectural plans and subway and sewer infrastructure, and used satellite images to design the street layout. Art director Aaron Garbut wanted players to recognise the city's highlights rather than its exact streets.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.