One of the most endearing features of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was Rockstar’s grand caricature of Las Vegas, or in the world of GTA, Las Venturas. However, despite the bright lights and the grand hotels the city only kicked into gear towards the end of the game, wetting our lips but not satisfying our thirst.

Well, Midway is going to open the floodgates this autumn with This is Vegas. The open-world, self proclaimed “Lifestyle Game” will give players the opportunity to, in their own words, “live out their Vegas fantasies by fighting, gambling, racing and partying their way through the most fast-paced and wildest city in the world.”

This is Vegas’ mantra is Gamble, Race, Party, Fight. Pretty straightforward and open, if you ask me. A big decider in this game will be how well they use the sandbox element rather than simply the games plot, if there is a plot at all. It would defiantly set this game apart if all their effort was put into those subtleties that other games with a sandbox element are forced to overlook due to the ‘burden’ of narrative.

This is Vegas is expected to ship for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC this autumn.

[See also: This is Vegas gallery]