Grand Theft Auto VI

Grand Theft Auto VI is Rockstar's next major open-world action game and brings the series back to Vice City. The setting includes not only the city itself, but also the fictional US state of Leonida, with coastal regions, islands, swamplands and other locations outside the metropolis.

The story centers on Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos. When an initially simple heist goes wrong, both get drawn into a criminal conspiracy that runs throughout Leonida. Their relationship and the need to rely on each other in an increasingly dangerous situation form the core of the story.

Grand Theft Auto VI releases on Nov 19, 2026. Rockstar had initially set the date for May 26, 2026, and later moved the release to November. Pre-ordered digital versions can be downloaded in advance from Nov 12.

The current date applies to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Rockstar describes GTA VI as a single-player experience and has not yet announced a separate PC release.

At launch, Grand Theft Auto VI comes natively to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Rockstar is currently not planning a PC, PlayStation 4 or Xbox One version. Older platforms and a possible later PC release should therefore not be treated as confirmed releases.

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has left the door open again for PC: at the publisher's virtual annual general meeting on Sep 17, 2026, he described PC as a platform that is becoming increasingly important for the company over time, and said in principle that games should be released where a relevant audience exists. However, a PC version of GTA VI or a date for one has still not been announced.

GTA VI remains a story-driven open-world action game, combining exploration, vehicles, heists, gunfights and other criminal activities with a staged campaign. Jason and Lucia move through Vice City and the considerably larger Leonida, while missions and the open world interlock.

Rockstar's roughly 27-minute Extended Look from August 2026 was filmed entirely from in-game footage on PlayStation 5. The video shows longer continuous gameplay scenes and gives the most detailed impression so far of the world, characters and gameplay.

Leonida features a dynamic weather and wind system. Rain can hit individual districts while neighboring areas stay dry. After showers, surfaces stay wet and puddles remain before gradually drying.

Cloud banks, wind, fog and tropical storms affect more than just the view. Depending on waves and wind, boats can rock more heavily. Planes and helicopters also react to severe weather, which can cause minor damage if exposed for long periods. Pedestrians seek shelter when the weather worsens.

According to Game Informer, Leonida is home to more than 170 animal species on land, in water and in the air, including rare species.

Rockstar describes Leonida as the largest setting in the series so far. Reports from conversations with Rockstar North say the full map is roughly twice the size of Grand Theft Auto V and about three times the size of the playable area of Red Dead Redemption 2. Vice City itself is said to be roughly twice the size of Los Santos.

Rockstar has not published an official square-kilometer figure. The size comparisons should therefore be understood as relative reference values, not as exact area measurements.

Rockstar North describes Leonida as a world in which scale, interaction, density and handcrafted detail were expanded at the same time. Co-studio head Aaron Garbut specifically names rooftops, alleys, interiors and the transitions between them as areas the team worked out in detail.

According to Garbut, the project reached such a large number of interiors that buildings are meant to feel more like connected places of “inside and outside”. However, Rockstar has neither named a specific number of accessible interiors nor claimed that every building can be entered.

The environmental storytelling is also designed around this density. Rockstar's open-world writing team describes streets, advertising, talk radio and snippets of conversation as content that at first seems like background when passing by, but moves to the foreground narratively with closer attention. Leonida is not meant to copy today's world like a documentary, but to deliberately satirize it; in some places, playability can take priority over strict realism.

Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos together form the narrative core of Grand Theft Auto VI. Rockstar describes both as deliberately different characters who are at once resilient, vulnerable and flawed. Lucia pursues her goals more determinedly, while Jason reacts more to circumstances; their opposing perspectives shape the shared story.

The relationship is more than just backdrop for the story: over the course of the narrative, both characters are meant to learn from each other, challenge each other and, depending on the situation, be right or wrong. With this, Rockstar links the crime story in Leonida with a partnership that evolves under pressure.

PEGI briefly published a PEGI 18 rating for Grand Theft Auto VI in early Oct 2026, but removed the public listing again shortly after. The content description published earlier mentioned realistic violence, frequent drug use and strong sexual themes, among other things; according to the text, drugs could be used directly from the inventory.

On Rockstar's official US site, GTA VI still carries the ESRB rating Mature 17+, with notes on violence, strong language, nudity, strong sexual content, and drug and alcohol use. For Germany, the following still applies: neither a PEGI rating nor the US ESRB rating replaces a separate USK rating.

On Oct 8, 2026, Rockstar presented the first six in-game radio stations for Grand Theft Auto VI. Short previews can be heard in advance on the official music page. Confirmed are Cocoteo FM (modern Latin American music), Back Country Radio (country), Afro Bank FM (African music and amapiano), The Chamber (metal), the returning Flash FM (pop) and Dirty South Classics (South American rap and hip-hop). Rockstar explicitly describes these as a selection, not as the full number of stations available.

The stations have their own hosts: Cocoteo is hosted by El Martillo and La Gata, Back Country by MW and Delta Dawne, and Flash FM by Robyn and Alex. In addition, podcasts on demand are planned. Rockstar says radio and podcasts can also be played outside a vehicle via headphones or earbuds connected to in-game smartphones. This means music is no longer limited to drives through Leonida.

Separate from the in-game radio programming is Grand Theft Auto VI: The Album, a release planned in parallel with the game featuring 34 specially produced tracks. The exact total of all stations, podcast episodes and full music lists has not yet been published.

The original score for Grand Theft Auto VI is composed by the French electronic duo Justice, as Rockstar confirmed on Oct 15, 2026 together with the launch trailer. The piece Flower in a Hurricane, presented specially for this occasion, was created with Tame Impala, SZA and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard and is also listed on Grand Theft Auto VI: The Album. The score, curated radio stations and the separately released album serve different musical functions and should not be treated as the same thing.

Pedestrians in Grand Theft Auto VI react depending on their personality, their surroundings and your behavior. Among other things, Rockstar uses temperament, aggressiveness, previous observations and the relationship to the player character as influencing factors. Residents of different neighborhoods also differ in their jobs and social backgrounds.

According to Rockstar, around 600,000 specially crafted animations were created for this presentation as part of a developer interview with Edge. Making eye contact can trigger an argument, while other characters move out of the way or reach for a weapon. How often such situations occur cannot be inferred from the gameplay shown.

Residents also react to their environment, for example when a storm is approaching. This is meant to make Leonida feel not just like a backdrop for missions, but like a city whose people make their own decisions.

Vehicles in Grand Theft Auto VI have a fuel gauge and a separate engine condition. If needed, you can have your own cars delivered via a smartphone app. The service brings the car near your character for a fee.

Weapons aren't carried on the body without limits; they are also kept in the trunk. Anyone planning a robbery therefore has to consider which equipment is available and where the getaway vehicle is parked. Rockstar showed these mechanics in a demonstration for the magazine Edge.

Fuel levels affect how far you can drive. Whether and how these systems change each mission depends on the situation in play.