Map and Cities

1:32 Ananta's map has two cities at launch on Jan 15, 2027: Nova City, the modern coastal metropolis where the story begins, and Chongxiao, the Captain's hometown, which holds Lingyun City. NetEase has not published the map's size in square kilometers, as of Oct 10, 2026. The city in the Tokyo Game Show 2025 demo measured about 2 km by 3 km, lead producer Ash Qi has compared the city to roughly the size of Manhattan, and he says Chongxiao is "quite a bit bigger than Nova City". Until gamescom 2026 everything shown was set in Nova City; as Arekkz Gaming put it two days after the Aug 25, 2026 reveal, Ananta is "now launching with two cities instead of one", with the story taking place between them and Chongxiao looking "pretty massive". Below are both cities, every district and landmark NetEase names, the real places behind them and the cities planned after launch; moving around them is on Traversal and Vehicles and Driving.

Quick facts

Two cities, one story

1:08:08 NetEase presents Ananta as one story told across two cities. The gamescom Opening Night Live stream from Cologne introduced Ananta on Aug 25, 2026 as a game "with two massive cities" in which the player builds a profile and a social following as a member of the ACD, and promised a "first look at the city of Chongxiao". PlayStation's upload of the trailer says the story "unfolds between Nova City and Chongxiao's Lingyun City"; Steam's section "Two Cities, Two Adventures" sends the player "back to your old stomping grounds of Chongxiao" with "one plane ticket"; and the official site heads its cities "Journey to the East and explore".

The two maps were built one after the other. Ash Qi told TechRadar in Sep 2026 that "Nova City was the first map we created", that the team knew it had to make Chongxiao about a year into developing Nova City, and that each map has "different stories and a distinct atmosphere". A NetEase representative told Automaton at gamescom that the two cities exist independently but are connected, and that the Captain travels back and forth between them. How the trip works in play (the store text mentions a plane ticket) has not been shown, as of Oct 10, 2026.

How big is the Ananta map?

10:00 NetEase has not given an area for the map. Asked by Automaton, its representative said it may be hard to give the size as an exact figure the way one could for a real city, but that there is a great deal to it. GameGaki's silent 20-minute recording of the Tokyo Game Show 2025 demo, uploaded Sep 29, 2025, opens the in-game map at this point: a grid of streets and parks running down to a harbor and the sea. Producer Ash told Famitsu that the demo city was roughly 2 km by 3 km (おおよそ2km×3km), about 6 square kilometers, that players may feel it is bigger than the numbers suggest, and that the city itself might be scaled up by release; Famitsu added that the full city map was larger than the part the booth showed.

Asked the same question by Inven in Sep 2025, Ash Qi compared the city to about the size of Manhattan, adding that the figure is not fixed because the team plans to expand the city in various ways. At gamescom 2026 he told TechRadar that Chongxiao "is quite a bit bigger than Nova City" and that "our goal is to create the biggest open-world game in the free-to-play space." For play time, the NetEase representative told Automaton that players who want to can spend "100時間以上" (more than 100 hours) taking in the world.

Nova City

2:26 Nova City is the first city, where the new Captain of the ACD arrives at the start of the Story. GameSpot, which played it at gamescom 2026, calls it "a sprawling modern metropolis" packed with towering buildings, shops, restaurants, arcades and gyms, a city the game wants players to live in rather than cross between missions. Ash Qi describes "a modern, entertainment-driven vibe, with a livelier, occasionally chaotic energy." The official site names two of its areas: Downtown, "Loved By Locals", and the Veluxity Zone, "Fun Central", where ParaBoar are "the top dogs" and Reign Construction has its base. Its police force, the NCCA, is the Nova City Crime Agency (see Factions). Everything about it is on its own page, Nova City.

Chongxiao and Lingyun City

4:17 Chongxiao is the second city, revealed on Aug 25, 2026. IGN's Simon, who played both at gamescom, set the first, a modern city of skyscrapers, against the second, with its traditional Chinese architecture. Lingyun (凌云) is "a city within Chongxiao", in Ash Qi's words, and NetEase writes "Chongxiao's Lingyun City", so Chongxiao is the larger place and Lingyun the city in it. Ash Qi says Chongxiao has "more advanced technology, richer cultural content, and large-scale tourist attractions"; press who played it describe bamboo forests, tea plantations and a quiet village of white walls and black-tiled roofs. The official site names three of its areas: Mingpu District with Zenith Tower, Weilan Lake with Bachong Pagoda, and Longqi Village, home of Wei Yinglong. Everything about it is on its own page, Chongxiao.

Every district and landmark NetEase names

The official site's "Locations" section lists five areas, each with a heading and a short text, as of Oct 10, 2026. It gives no map, and the names it lists under some areas (Victor, Frank Forker, Arms, Broadcast Goose, Tie Shan) come without any description.

Players and press have seen more than these five: a Shibuya-style scramble crossing and expressways in Nova City (Gizmodo Japan), and in Chongxiao bamboo forests and tea plantations (Inven Global), a market (Bahamut GNN) and hot springs (Game Informer). The venues in both cities, from cat cafes to mahjong parlors, are on City Life and Activities.

Real places behind the cities

12:08 Ananta's cities are Asian on purpose. Havian's deep dive of Oct 4, 2025, drawing on the producers' interviews, explains that the team wanted a different feel from open worlds that focus heavily on Western settings, with Nova City inspired by cities in Japan and more cities from across Asia to come. Ash told Denfaminicogamer in Sep 2025 that many city games are modeled on American cities such as Los Angeles and New York, and that the team wanted to send the world a game with an "Asian modern city" feel. NetEase's gamescom 2026 announcement names the models: "Inspired by real-world metropolises such as Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Tokyo".

For Nova City, Japanese press saw Akihabara and Makuhari (Denfaminicogamer) and an almost Tokyo-like cityscape (Gizmodo Japan), while Ash told 4Gamer the team gathers interesting places from across Asia, not only Japan; NetEase's representative told Automaton it takes its motifs from East Asian cities, and TechRadar thought it looked "almost like a blend of Tokyo and Los Angeles". For Chongxiao, Ash Qi said "the inspiration behind Lingyun actually comes from Shanghai and Hangzhou, where our team lives and works", with "the real cities as a foundation". Gcores, citing NetEase's materials, lists Shanghai's Oriental Pearl Tower, the Bund skyline and Wukang Road beside Hangzhou's West Lake, Leifeng Pagoda and Longjing Village.

Buildings, rooftops and getting around

13:26 The city is meant to be entered, not just seen. NetEase's Tokyo Game Show 2025 announcement promised "accessible interiors across three vertical layers: rooftops, mid-levels, and ground floors", and Ash Qi told Inven that doors generally open and most buildings can be entered. Havian adds, from the producers' interviews, that the team brought in people from various industries for advice and sent staff to experience the kinds of venues it planned, and that a wide variety of buildings, the characters' homes included, can be entered (see Customization and Homes).

Getting across the map follows one rule, which Steam puts as "If you can see it, you can go there." NetEase's 2026 announcement lists travel "by car, motorcycle, helicopter, yacht, subway, hang glider and other forms of transportation". The cities differ, Gcores found: Nova City is crossed by wingsuit, yacht, car and web-style swinging, Chongxiao by shared bikes, e-scooters, small cargo trailers, skateboards and tour boats; the launch date trailer also shows a car flying over one of its tree-lined streets.

More cities after launch

8:28 NetEase plans to add cities after launch but has named none, as of Oct 10, 2026. Denfaminicogamer asked about the Tokyo Game Show 2025 demo's map, which looked like an island in the sea; Ash answered, as MugenFox's summary of Sep 26, 2025 relays, that the explorable maps will keep growing, with new cities and new countries so players can enjoy many kinds of city. He told Famitsu that a large bridge to the opposite shore, or travel by plane to farther places, could come in the long run, and told Inven that new regions and characters will be added and the cities made denser.

The 2026 statements are the same in outline. NetEase's representative told Automaton the team could not yet say what future cities will look like and keeps studying cities around the world, and NetEase's publishing leads told Insider Gaming in Sep 2026 that Ananta is planned to be supported for at least seven years with new quests, characters and maps.

Frequently asked questions

How big is the Ananta map? NetEase has not published the size of Ananta's map, as of Oct 10, 2026. The Tokyo Game Show 2025 demo city was about 2 km by 3 km, the lead producer compared the city to roughly the size of Manhattan, and he says Chongxiao is "quite a bit bigger than Nova City".

How many cities are in Ananta? Ananta launches with two cities: Nova City and Chongxiao, which contains Lingyun City. NetEase plans to add more cities after launch.

What is the new city in Ananta? Ananta's new city is Chongxiao, the Captain's hometown, revealed at gamescom Opening Night Live on Aug 25, 2026; its Lingyun City draws on Shanghai and Hangzhou.

What real cities is Ananta based on? NetEase says Ananta's cities are inspired by Shanghai, Hangzhou and Tokyo: Nova City by Japanese and other East Asian cities, and Chongxiao's Lingyun by Shanghai and Hangzhou, where the team lives and works.

What districts are in Ananta? The official Ananta site names five areas: Downtown and the Veluxity Zone in Nova City, and Mingpu District, Weilan Lake and Longqi Village in Chongxiao.

Can you enter buildings in Ananta? Yes. NetEase says Ananta's city has accessible interiors on three levels (rooftops, mid-levels and ground floors), and the lead producer says most doors open.

Will Ananta add more cities? Yes. Ananta's producer says the maps will keep expanding with new cities and countries after launch, though no third city has been named, as of Oct 10, 2026.

Sources

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• ANANTA on Steam, Valve, read Oct 10, 2026
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