Talk about gaming and you will not find even a single person who hasn’t heard about GTA.
The GTA series is one of the most popular video game series ever. GTA V, which was released in 2013 is still one of the most popular video games worldwide.
Because of the success of GTA V, people are more than eager for the launch of GTA 6.
It’s been eight long years since a new GTA game and I have collected some data that will give an idea about the release date and map of GTA.
In this article, we are going to look at various reports and leaks from trusted sources to get an idea about the launch of GTA 6.
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Launch of GTA 6: All You Need to Know
Release Date
Before we go all in to speculate the launch date of GTA 6, let’s see the timeline of the launch years of the main games in the GTA series:
So as you can see, the launch time has been increasing gradually, but for GTA 6, it has been a little longer than you would expect.
However, we have some good information from various reports and leaks that can help in speculating the launch date.
Rockstar Mag is a french publication and according to them, the story for GTA 6 is complete and the voice acting is fulfilled too.
Another report from Kotaku claims that the game is in the early stages of development(as of April 2020).
Now the latter report seems to be more credible given the fact that Rockstar is planning to launch a new version of GTA V.
Rockstar Games have simply denied the existence of GTA 6 so everything is a bit confusing.
There is a new “expanded and enhanced” version of GTA 5 set to launch on November 11, 2021, for PS5 and Xbox series X.
In addition to that, Rockstar Games have also announced that a standalone version of GTA Online will be launched for PS5 and Xbox Series X.
The details about this “enhanced and expanded” version of GTA V are scarce and we will have to wait until November to see it.
Now, why would Rockstar Games launch a new version of GTA V if GTA 6 is already complete so the RockstarMag report is not that credible?
If we believe the Kotaku reports then stating that it is in the early stages of development, it means that we are looking at a few more years for the game to complete its development process.
However, Take-Two Interactive which owns Rockstar Games has some subtle details about GTA 6.
Then there is an interesting report from VentureBeat. According to them, Take-Two Interactive’s 10-SEC filing(it basically shows financial plans for the next five years) indicates that the company expects to spend around USD 89 Million on marketing between April 2023 and March 2024. It is a huge spike, almost double compared to the rest of the years.
Unfortunately, there has been a correction in the report. It turns out that this budget is not for Rockstar Games and has nothing to do with the launch of GTA 6.
Even if we do believe that this spike in spending has nothing to do with the launch of GTA 6, it still lines up with Tom Henderson’s GTA 6 release date prediction.
For those who don’t know who Henderson is, he is known for the accurate leaks of Battlefield and Call of Duty.
He also released a video on the same topic and here are some of the key points from it:
- According to Henderson’s sources, GTA 6 isn’t going to launch until between 2024 and 2025.
- He pointed out that Rockstar has been focusing a lot on “employee wellbeing” for the last year or so. And because of that, the company does not want to announce the game until they are completely sure that it will release on the promised date. To avoid delays and overwork their employees, they are taking things slowly.
- According to him, GTA 6 will be only for Xbox Series X/S and PS5. We all know that these gaming consoles are not in stock anywhere. So Rockstar Games is waiting until there is a “big enough market” for these consoles.
- The third main reason according to him is the popularity of GTA V. The game launched in 2013 and so far Rockstar Games have sold around 145 Million copies of GTA V. So there is no good reason to hinder the popularity of GTA V by announcing a new game in the series.
If you look at all the points, they make perfect sense indicating the launch of GTA 6 between the years 2024 and 2025. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier also supports Henderson’s prediction and says that Henderson’s claims “match up with what I’ve heard”.
Let’s sum up whatever we know so far. So we know from a report that GTA 6 is in the early stages of development.
We also know that Rockstar Games is focusing on the release of the “enhanced and expanded” version of GTA V for PS5 and Xbox Series X.
Then there are multiple sources indicating a 2024 launch of GTA 6.
What About the Map?
The thing with Rockstar games is that it is very covert in the ways of its game development methods. People hardly know anything until they officially announce something.
Talking about the map of GTA 6, it might be totally irrelevant but it is what we know so far.
One of the fresh and biggest rumors regarding the map of GTA 6 is that we are looking at Vice City’s return for GTA 6.
There is a YouTube Channel called The Know that supports this claim along with a deleted Reddit Post. According to the rumors, GTA 6 is developed under the code name “Project Americas”.
The name indicates that the users will be able to fly between the US and South America. The Vice City map with 80s timeline and drug wars seems to be the ideal storyline for the game.
There have also been tons of alleged “leaked images” of GTA 6 lining with the Vice City map prediction. Interestingly, Henderson claims that Vice City will be a part of GTA 6 but the map will not be as big as the rumors claim it to be.
He also points out that GTA 6 will not be set in the 80s or 90s but it will be set in modern times. The main reason for this is to fit the game with GTA Online and developers wanting “as much freedom as possible to release as many DLCs as possible”.
Apart from that, there are other rumors that GTA 6 will have Los Santos, Vice City, and Liberty City as part of the map.
Some rumors also point out that GTA 6 might be set in the future while others say that it will have a London-style map.
If you are wondering how GTA 6 with Los Santos, Vice City, and Liberty City will look, RealityDesign has posted a concept image of what the map could look like on GTA Forums.
Some Rumors
- There are videos on the internet showing a Vice City map for GTA 6 and players are also shown doing some activities including bowling. These are most likely fake given the rumors that the game is in the early stages of development.
- According to Henderson, GTA 6 will have the same approach as GTA V with “multiple playable characters”. He also said that the game will have one female character who will be the “bright one” with knowledge of computers and hacking.
- ScreenRant observed a job listing for “Cinematic Gameplay Capture Artist” at Rockstar. This indicates that we can expect a GTA 6 trailer in the near future.
In a Nutshell – GTA 6
So that was all about the launch of GTA 6. To be honest, there is just too much information from too many sources. There is nothing very solid yet.
One thing to know for sure is that whenever an official announcement will be made by Rockstar Games, the whole world will know about it and until then it is all speculation.
Here is a short summary regarding all the important stuff about the launch of GTA 6:
| Launch Date | Nothing clear but speculated to launch in the year 2024 |
| Map | Most sources indicate the return of Vice City along with Liberty CityThe game will likely combine the US and South America |
| Story Line | Nothing solid. Could be set in the 80s and 90s with drug wars as a storyline.Other sources indicate modern-day Vice City with an expanded map. |
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