Yes, we could add this option, I'll put it in now. There are issues with zooming out the map the other way (i.e. seeing a larger area), as the game only loads the map on demand (in pieces).great. will it be up to the host which section it is that is open or does the mod that is used control it? Lag isn't affected by the ammount of map loaded, or not in any significant way. I supose it'd be possible for a mod to change the gta_vc.dat so that only certain sections are loaded. We will probably allow the world limits to be changed on-the-fly which should provide some interesting game modes.
oh, i always thought that the map had a huge effect on bandwith, but i guess i was wrong (after all, the server doesnt care whether it updates the positions of players on opposite sides of the map, or the positions of players concentrated in a smaller area).
not on the bw but a real poor cpu could lag if a mod had very detailed models and big, detailed textures
in the end you could also place some kind of barrier model where you want it to cut the map off