It’s been a decade since GTA 5 was released, and fans have patiently waited for Rockstar to finally announce the Grand Theft Auto VI’s official release date. The 10-year wait has resulted in many speculations, especially after a major GTA VI data leak following a massive hacking attack last year.
In this article, we will dive into everything we know so far on GTA VI, including the release date, info leaks and the latest rumors.
GTA VI Release Date
As of now, Rockstar Games, GTA’s developer, has not made an official announcement on the Grand Theft Auto 6 release date. The huge delay (10 years) in producing GTA 6 was mainly due to COVID-19. The game has been in development since 2014 but had to stop as a result of the global pandemic, and then subsequently resumed in early 2022.
While the GTA 6 release date continues to be a mystery, Microsoft had just probably dropped an accidental hint on the game’s possible release date. If you still do not know, UK’s Competition and Markets Authority sued to block the Microsoft x Activision Blizzard merger. As a response to UK’s CMA, Microsoft included in their statement: “The highly-anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI is expected to be released in 2024.”
More Speculations on Grand Theft Auto 6 Release Date
GTA VI Official Trailer Issue: On February 4, 2022, Rockstar Games confirmed in a Tweet that GTA VI is in active development, but fans were curious as to why the developers did not release a GTA 6 trailer. Looking back, most of Rockstar’s game launches began with an announcement teaser, usually followed by an official trailer a few days later. But this time around, GTA VI did not release any official trailer, let alone an announcement, which left many fans in immense speculation about the real status of the game’s development.
Keep in mind, though, that Rockstar Games still holds the last straw, and fans just have to wait until they make their official announcement on GTA VI release date.
GTA VI and GTA Online 2 Info Leak
Here is a brief recap on the hacking attack that caused GTA VI and GTA Online 2 major info leak:
- On the 18th of September 2022, a certain teapotuberhacker posted on GTA Forums around 90 videos of what seemed like footage from the unreleased and in-development version of GTA VI. The hacker then asked for a negotiation deal with Rockstar Games in return for the apparently also stolen GTA V source code and in-development version of GTA 6.
- On the 19th of September 2022, Rockstar Games tweeted that they suffered a network intrusion which led to confidential data, including Grand Theft Auto’s early development stages being leaked to the public.
Since then, the leaked videos have been shared all over the internet and on numerous social media platforms. Take-Two, the parent company of Rockstar, immediately launched a take-down action for these videos, but it was too late.
The 90 leaked videos from teapotuberhacker were mainly the main source that sparked countless GTA VI rumors as they gave many GTA fans a picture of the probable GTA VI’s new and improved gameplay, maps, characters, cars, structure, and so much more.
GTA’s leaked gameplay and rumors
Disclaimer: These information are not officially confirmed and were illegally released to the public through a hacking attack. Therefore, whether these are factual or not is undetermined.
These five rumors were mostly based after an article by Daniel Acker was published in Bloomberg News:
Rumor # 1: GTA VI will get a female lead
Who is the rumored female lead that will come to GTA VI? It is none other than Bonnie, inspired by the infamous American criminals Bonnie and Clyde. According to Bloomberg, GTA 6 will feature a duo of protagonists similar to Bonnie and Clyde. If this were true, it would be the first playable female lead ever in the history of Grand Theft Auto. This would also serve as proof that Rockstar has begun taking steps into becoming a more progressive and inclusive company, as they had promised.
Rumor # 2: GTA VI will get an expansion through DLC
Unlike GTA V, GTA VI is rumored to have a continued map and structure expansion through DLC. This is a big contrast to GTA V, which received many complaints regarding its lack of DLC, meaning the gameplay and map remained the same for a long time. This information was leaked by Tez2 on GTA Forum.
Rumor # 3: GTA VI has a brand-new game engine
An insider from Rockstar, Chris Kilppel, leaked the information that GTA 6 will have an enhanced version of RAGE (Rockstar Advanced Game Engine). To meet millions of fans’ expectations for this super-awaited game, GTA 6 is rumored to feature a brand-new engine that could also mean the possibility of having more diverse missions and different gameplay mechanics.
Rumor #4 : GTA VI will bring back Vice City
The rumor that the iconic GTA setting, Vice City, will be back in GTA VI was founded after the 90 leaked videos from Teapotuberhacker. In one of the footage, the initial “VCPD” was seen on the rear ends of police cars during a shootout with Lucia, the rumored GTA protagonist.
Another footage also revealed a building with the name Vice City Neighborhood Enhancement Center which was shown behind Lucia while she was hiding in a car’s backseat.
Rumor # 5: GTA VI will bring back old characters from previous GTA games
While GTA VI is rumored to have a new female protagonist which made a lot of fans really excited, GTA VI will also apparently bring back the old favorites. The rumored characters that will be back for GTA VI are the all-time beloved figures Carl Johnson, Trevor and Tommy Vercetti!