Rebuilding San Aurelio, block by block

San Aurelio is not a map. It is a city that happens to run inside Unturned. That distinction matters to the environment team, because it changes the question we ask at the start of every build: not “what would look cool here?” but “who lives here, and what do they need?”

Since 2019, we have rebuilt or substantially revised every district at least twice. The current map is 8×8 kilometres, with eleven districts, more than 600 enterable interiors, and roughly 2,300 hand-placed props that exist purely to make a street feel used.

The rules we build by

We have three internal rules for San Aurelio, and they have survived every art director we have had:

• Every building has a story. If it is a shop, we know what it sells. If it is an apartment, we know who lives on the third floor.
• Nothing is clean. Cities are layered. There is always a patch, a stain, an old sign under a new one.
• The player is never more than 30 seconds from something to do. Exploration should be rewarded, not punished.

That is why the PC Systems store has a back room full of boxes. It is why Vault 9 has a second exit nobody advertises. It is why the mansions in Bel-Air Ridge have garages that are actually empty, because the people who own them are never home.

What we are working on now

The next district rebuild is Downtown North, which includes the financial district and the old courthouse. We are replacing the last of the original 2019 geometry with new modular kits, adding a proper subway connection, and building out the rooftops — a part of the city that has been criminally underused.

We are also improving interiors. A lot. More than 200 buildings are getting new furniture layouts, lighting passes, and interactive props. The goal is simple: if a player opens a door, the room behind it should be worth opening.

“A good city is not measured by its skyline. It is measured by how many doors you want to open.”

All of this ships in Season 9 and beyond. In the meantime, the development previews in our gallery are captured in-engine, unedited, and yes — that cherry blossom tree is custom.