Rockstar Games stated that they avoided placing unreachable pieces of land in the distance to retain the city's 'complete' feel.
Although in the game, Liberty City appears to be an isolated set of islands, the rest of America is actually nearby. The only borough not to be recreated in the game is Staten Island. The state and city of New Jersey is Alderney, which is separate from Liberty City. Brooklyn is Broker, Queens is Dukes, Manhattan is Algonquin, and The Bronx is Bohan. This rendition of Liberty City has versions of four of the five boroughs of New York City, plus New Jersey. Compared to the previous universe counterparts, the city has more detail and personality, with many places which are based on landmarks such as the Statue of Happiness, Star Junction, and the Rotterdam Tower. Grand Theft Auto IV marks Liberty City's fifth appearance in the series after the original Grand Theft Auto, Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto Advance and Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, which came out in 1997, 2001, 20 respectively. 10.3 Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (set in 2009).
