In February 2022, representatives of Rockstar Games officially confirmed that the next game in Grand Theft Auto series is in development. However, the PR department didn't bother to whet public interest with a trailer, teaser, screenshots, or regular concept art. Rockstar is known for its secrecy, the company doesn't reveal its cards until their game has gone through all stages of main production. We could still be in the dark about all the features and gameplay nuances of GTA 6 if it weren't for a major leak in September 2022, thanks to which we learned a lot of information about Rockstar's next game.

This article gathers all the available information about Grand Theft Auto 6 to date. We have frame-by-frame analyzed the material from last year's leak: new gameplay mechanics, setting, locations, characters, transport, and other interesting features. In addition, we will tell when the announcement with the subsequent release date is expected to take place, what new technologies will appear in the game, and how the online mode might change.

Announcement and release date of Grand Theft Auto 6

The first and main question that has been bothering players since the confirmation of the development of Grand Theft Auto 6 is when will a trailer with a specific release date appear?

As part of the financial conference, Take-Two Interactive stated that it expects record profits between April 2024 and March 2025. The report for investors indicated a sum of $8 billion. Even if Take-Two releases BioShock 4, XCOM 3, Mafia 4, NBA 2K, and Civilization 7 in one year, it still won't be enough to earn such a large sum. Obviously, the publisher plans to get record profits from the sales of GTA 6.

It's also worth noting that Take-Two expects to earn $5.5 billion in the third and fourth quarters of 2024, and the remaining $2.5 billion — in early 2025. Therefore, the release of the sixth Grand Theft Auto is scheduled for the fall of next year. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick noted that in 2025 his company will be able to boast record revenues and will reach a new level of operational efficiency. This forecast is most likely based on the expected profits from microtransactions in the online mode of GTA.

Third-party insiders like Jason Schreier and Tom Henderson also believe that the release of Grand Theft Auto 6 will be in 2024. Journalist Chris Klippel reported on his Twitter that Rockstar has started actively recruiting people for tester positions. A similar situation occurred in the spring of 2018, half a year before the release of Red Dead Redemption 2. This indirectly hints to us that Rockstar has finished the main stage of development of Grand Theft Auto 6 and is now actively preparing the game for release.

In most cases, Rockstar Games presents its projects in October-November without any special occasions and events. The public hopes for the announcement of GTA 6 by the end of 2023. Many insiders, who have connections with the main team of developers, claim that the first trailer is just around the corner, and we will see it very soon.

Setting of Grand Theft Auto 6 — modern Vice City

With the announcement of Grand Theft Auto 4, the developers announced that future games in the series would be combined into one global HD universe. That is, the setting is based on modern realities. The leaked gameplay confirmed that Grand Theft Auto 6 will unfold in Vice City. Watching the gameplay snippets, we can notice the architecture of South Florida. Miami is located in the southeast of the state. Vice City is a game adaptation of Miami.

The fan community has already assembled a detailed map of the upcoming game, based on real landmarks of South Florida and frames of early gameplay.

One of the landmarks of Miami that appeared in the gameplay is the real baseball stadium LoanDepot Park. Florida residents say they recognize familiar places in the new Vice City.

In one of the leaked documents, we found an interesting detail: players will have access to more than 157 premises they can enter. Among them will definitely be a modern version of the "Malibu" club, strip club Jack of Hearts and a football stadium. Also, the document contains information that bars, restaurants, apartments, supermarkets, and other public institutions are necessary for the implementation of the mechanics of small robberies.

In the screenshots and gameplay snippets, you can see familiar places from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City 2003. At the same time, the city itself will be much larger in area and will surpass Los Santos from the fifth part.

Vice City is surrounded by islands for exploration. According to some reports, these places will expand with the release of major updates and paid DLC. The city itself has a functioning metro, which can become a kind of fast travel analog.

Plot and main characters of Grand Theft Auto 6

Leaked materials confirmed insider statements: the main characters will be a guy named Jason and a girl named Lucia. Journalist Jason Schreier said that the main plot is written under the impression of the story of Bonnie and Clyde. Since most of the new game mechanics are tied to robbing small establishments and large banks, we can be confident that Schreier's statement is close to the truth.

The events of the new GTA will take place in our time. In the leaked gameplay snippet, there is a dialogue in which it is mentioned that Jay Norris (a character from the fifth GTA) is dead, which means that the action of the sixth part will indeed unfold after the events of GTA 5.

It is worth noting that Rockstar games have always been distinguished from other games by their special humor and satire on absurd situations that happen in the world. The departure of Dan Houser symbolically hints that the following projects will be more cautious in speaking out on acute social problems. If before Dan could defend the absurd situations invented by the scriptwriters, then without him the writers will have to follow strict instructions from the higher management. Jason Schreier has already confirmed that the plot will move away from ridiculing modern America, and the number of jokes and jabs at the poor, blacks, and other groups will significantly decrease. Grand Theft Auto 6 will be significantly different from its predecessors, and many fans may not like Rockstar's new direction.

Gameplay Innovations in Grand Theft Auto 6: Weapons, Transport, Systems

At a quick glance, the early build of Grand Theft Auto 6 is indistinguishable from the fifth installment. Yes, the game is built on the Red Dead Redemption 2 engine, but without meticulous detailing and elaboration. So far, we see the same "five", but just without cool models and textures.

Dialogue System

Grand Theft Auto 6 will introduce a dialogue system from Red Dead Redemption 2. In the snack bar robbery video, the main character could interact with non-player characters. We noticed the following lines: greetings, threats, robbery, and additional information. According to insiders, a reputation system will be introduced in the game, which will affect future responses from non-player characters.

Arsenal

The arsenal will be limited. There's a chance that the developers will repeat the system of carrying guns on the body, as in RDR 2. The rest of the weapons, which the player cannot take with them, will be stored in a warehouse or car trunk.

The game will feature an inventory with additional items, as in Red Dead Redemption 2. We noticed medicines, cigarettes, and painkillers in it. The weapon wheel has been redesigned, where you can hold one large-caliber weapon, one pistol, an ammunition item (grenades), a knife, and a flashlight.

The main characters will become more mobile with additional animations. Also, the new Grand Theft Auto will significantly expand the possibilities for stealth passage. Large-caliber weapons can no longer be hidden under the armpit, and for more unnoticeable movement, you need to lie on the floor.

Robberies

Most of the gameplay innovations are tied to minor robberies.

The game will implement a system of quick switching between characters.

The secondary character will assist in certain situations. The player can summon a companion, ask for help, and indicate a specific action. This feature will be actively used during robberies of small cafes and shops. There is a scale on the screen counting down the time until the police arrive. The player will have to monitor the hostages and, as in RDR 2, take everything valuable. Then the stolen goods can be pawned.

The game will allow drilling locks. The main characters will have special abilities, like the characters in GTA 5. For example, Jason can activate "robber's vision" and highlight valuable items that can be appropriated for further resale.

The player will be allowed to tie up hostages, use them as a human shield, drag and give orders. The developers have significantly improved the dynamic reaction of non-player characters to the player's actions. Thanks to artificial intelligence and the system of unpredictable crowd, robberies will be more diverse and exciting than in PAYDAY 2 and Kane and Lynch: Dead Men.

At the same time, the police will become a serious threat, and it will be much more difficult to wreak havoc on the spot.

Life Simulation

Food and drink give a certain buff for a limited time. There will be no survival elements in the game, but characters need to eat to get additional capabilities and improved characteristics.

Insiders claim that the game will have a hair growth system that works in Rockstar's previous game — Red Dead Redemption 2.

Surveillance cameras were noticed on the street. They may be used to record certain in-game moments — for example, crimes or incidents.

Grand Theft Auto 6 will undergo significant changes in the NPC navigation system and open-world logic. Two years ago, Rockstar's deputy director of technical issues and the leading artificial intelligence programmer patented a "system and methods of virtual navigation in a gaming environment". This algorithm will allow the studio to create a living "sandbox" that we have never seen before.

Having studied the patent, we got an idea of how Vice City will function. Each city resident has their own daily routine, as in the latest games in The Elder Scrolls series. The world reacts to the player's actions and changes depending on the decisions they make.

The open world is more alive than in Red Dead Redemption 2. In GTA 6, there will be numerous dynamic events that the player can interact with.

Transport

Cars will receive detailed interior work with the possibility of meticulous customization. The player will be able to adjust mirrors, steering wheel, seat, sun visor, and other elements.

The car damage system will be noticeably improved. The physics is similar to what we saw in GTA 4, but the control will become less arcade.

Grand Theft Auto 6 Online

Several insiders, including Tom Henderson and Gamesradar, reported that Grand Theft Auto 6 will receive regular updates with new locations and additional plot tasks. This information was partly confirmed by Jason Schreier.

According to the Gamingbible website, for Rockstar, the single-player mode of Grand Theft Auto 6 is the main priority in development. But no one is going to abandon the online mode, although there are almost no details about the development of the multiplayer "sandbox" at the moment. The fact of registering the domain name gtavicecityonline.com can be recorded as a clear hint at the development of GTA 6 Online. There is a chance that this site will be associated with the multiplayer mode, but for now, it's just a domain that is in Rockstar's assets.

In the summer of 2022, Rockstar announced that it would no longer create major additions for Red Dead Online and redirect employees to a new ambitious project. In September, a special message appeared on the studio's website, where the company expressed gratitude to all the employees who have supported Grand Theft Auto 5 and GTA: Online for nine years. This message can be seen as the final point in the development of the "fifth" and the transfer of all employees to full-scale development of online content for Grand Theft Auto 6.

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