For over eight years, Rockstar managed to keep Grand Theft Auto 5 a trending game that continually tops sales charts, and it remains lucrative thanks to Grand Theft Auto Online. Although many gamers have spent hours upon hours in Los Santos, which remains an impressively detailed open world even by modern standards, plenty more have been desperate for the next installment of the Grand Theft Auto series. Fortunately, after plenty of secrecy, Rockstar has confirmed that the next Grand Theft Auto game is in development.
No official information has been released about Grand Theft Auto 6, but that has not stopped gamers from speculating and rumors from flourishing. Some rumors have been wild and are unlikely to be true. However, others seem to make a little too much sense, while presenting some ideas that would work well in a Grand Theft Auto game. Of all the rumors floating around, there are a few that would undoubtedly ensure that GTA 6 is a generation-defining game.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Should Explore Different Time Periods
Perhaps the most enduring rumor is that Grand Theft Auto 6 will be taking place in Vice City, so much so that many have begun to simply assume that this is true. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, originally released in 2002, first introduced gamers to the fictional state of Vice City, which is based on 1980s Miami. It has since become iconic thanks to how well Rockstar crafted and satirized the atmosphere and aesthetics of the time, so it is not surprising that gamers would be clawing to return to it. However, if rumors are true, GTA 6's Vice City will not be restricted to a single period.
According to some leakers, GTA 6 will take place over multiple periods, allowing gamers to experience Vice City in different decades. Grand Theft Auto leaker @Onion00048 has made several claims about GTA 6 on Twitter, stating that the game will take place in Vice City chiefly, although Liberty City will make an appearance in the prologue and the epilogue. The leaker also claims that the game will be split into two time periods, with the first half taking place in 1985 and the second half occurring in the modern-day.
This addition would help to make GTA 6 feel like a next-generation game. Rockstar has demonstrated that it is capable of exploring the ways a location can change over time, and this idea is toyed with in Red Dead Redemption 2, where change and the end of the era of outlaws is a central theme. Consequently, as the game progresses, players see how industrialization slowly takes over the American landscape. The epilogue, which takes place in 1907, almost a decade after the events of the main portion of the game, illustrates the passage of time well by showing the ways businesses have been erected and once-familiar locations are different.
Rockstar could build on what it learned with Red Dead Redemption 2, and make Vice City feel more alive, by showing players how the location changes over time physically and socially. It would also help the game to feel more realistic, as even Miami is a vastly different place compared to what it was in the 1980s.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Should Revamp the Wanted System
One of the most iconic aspects of the Grand Theft Auto series is the cat-and-mouse game that gamers can play with cops. If a player is found breaking the laws, the cops begin the chase. This chase, like in real life, can end with a simple arrest, or it can escalate, turning from a foot chase into a high-speed car chase featuring multiple vehicles and tons of exchanged gunfire. It is an essential aspect of the Grand Theft Auto experience, and there can be tons of fun had trying to stay alive as helicopters and armored vehicles unleash a shower of bullets.
The wanted system is not perfect, however. Police can be far too aggressive at times, even for the most minor infractions. As a result, mere fender-benders can turn into violent interactions with the law. Fortunately, some rumors claim that the wanted system and police behavior will be receiving a drastic overhaul in GTA 6. These rumors have been further spurred on by Rockstar's presentation at the Games Developer Conference (GDC) in 2021, where the studio outlined some AI changes coming to future games. Rockstar revealed that it will be making use of machine learning with its AI, as well as improving the responsiveness and quality of humans and animals.
Once again, Rockstar can take some cues from Red Dead Redemption 2, where law enforcement is a little more realistic. For minor crimes, players can simply surrender and be sent off with a warning. Players can also evade the police by changing their appearance. Similarly, in GTA 6, players should be able to settle minor crimes with just fines or a warning. Furthermore, police should continue investigating crimes even after the chase is over, forcing players to constantly change their appearance to evade arrest. A sprinkling of corrupt police who can be bribed should also be present, just to give the game some added realism.
There are plenty more rumors around, including claims that Grand Theft Auto 6 will feature a female protagonist, and that weather will play a huge role. All these ideas are exciting, and if there is a company that is capable of pulling off a highly ambitious project, it is certainly Rockstar. After the long wait for Grand Theft Auto 6, gamers understandably have their expectations high. By allowing gamers to explore different periods, and by overhauling the wanted system to make interactions with police more dynamic with a more gentle escalation of force, Rockstar can ensure that GTA 6 is every bit as impactful as its predecessors have been in gaming.
Grand Theft Auto 6 is currently in development.