With over a year now having passed since the release ofGrand Theft Auto 6’s first trailer, fans are still relatively in the dark in terms of what they can expect to see from the massively anticipated project. Rockstar still seems firmly set on a 2025 release window for the title, leaving fans to hope for a fresh batch of pertinent information to release over the coming weeks or months.
While a lot of the core characters and plot-points ofGrand Theft Auto 6are still unknown, the first trailer for the game did give players a pretty good impression of the title’s portrayal of Vice City and its inhabitants. Of course, theGTAfranchise is renowned for its satirical takes on the real-world locations that it often takes inspiration from, and while this was definitely present inGrand Theft Auto 5’s Los Santos, the playable characters of the 2013 game were often the main source of the most eccentric and explosive events. Protagonists like Trevor Phillips and even Michael De Santa gaveGTA 5a lot of its spice, yet it seems thatGTA 6will feature more grounded protagonists while placing more hilarious and disturbing unpredictability into the NPC inhabitants of Vice City.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Could Shake Up GTA 5’s Narrative Approach in a Fascinating Way
The first trailer forGrand Theft Auto 6largely focused on Lucia, one of the upcoming project’s two main protagonists, showcasing her time in prison and her relationship with the title’s other protagonist, whom leaks and rumors refer to as Jason. This has led many fans to believe thatthe next trailer forGrand Theft Auto 6will shine a much greater light on Jason, with the character currently being shrouded in a lot of mystery.
From the brief glimpse that fans got of these two major characters inGTA 6’s first trailer, it seems clear that they offer a return to much more grounded main characters for the franchise, with both protagonists seemingly being pushed forward by the strong emotions they feel for each other. While this more realistic and emotional approach has worked well in the past formajor characters like Niko Bellic or even Carl Johnson, 2013’sGrand Theft Auto 5boldly pushed the limit of personality and personal motivation for its three iconic protagonists.
Perhaps to better justify the crazy crime sprees that players often partake in withinGTAtitles,GTA 5’s Trevor was essentially psychopathic in his approach to life, often killing indiscriminately and flying off the handle during major story points as a part of his extremely unstable personality. While Franklin acted as a contrasting force to this chaos, Michael still displayed a lot of reckless behavior, be it pulling down the foundations of houses or driving a car through a dealership display window in fairly low-stakes situations.
GTA 6’s Setting is the Perfect Match For the Franchise’s Wild Nature
It already seems quite likely that Lucia and Jason will not have this same wild edge to them, and Rockstar might be able to instill the best of both worlds by instead relying on the world of Vice City to provide this heavily expected element ofGTA 6. The mainmap ofGTA 6takes heavy real-world influence from Miami and wider areas around Florida, and it is already abundantly clear that Rockstar is taking huge inspiration from wild and often viral “Florida man” moments for its NPCs and side-content.
A man known as theFlorida Joker claimed that Rockstar used his likeness in theGTA 6trailer, for example, and it seems that these types of characters and ensuing events will be a staple of making Vice City feel as dangerous as it is hilarious and wild. Relying on the lower stakes of side characters to fulfill this addictive element ofGTAgames will be the perfect way for Rockstar to make the most out ofGTA 6’s returning setting, while keeping an air of grounded tension and believability to Jason, Lucia, and the story that they will lead.
Grand Theft Auto 6
WHERE TO PLAY
Grand Theft Auto VI heads to the state of Leonida, home to the neon-soaked streets of Vice City and beyond in the biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet.Jason and Lucia have always known the deck is stacked against them. But when an easy score goes wrong, they find themselves on the darkest side of the sunniest place in America, in the middle of a criminal conspiracy stretching across the state of Leonida — forced to rely on each other more than ever if they want to make it out alive.