The major Grand Theft Auto 6 leak has had a significant impact on the news cycle of Rockstar’s upcoming game, but the more interesting information to be gleaned about the follow-up to GTA 5 can be found outside the leak itself from official sources. Between shifts in Rockstar’s company culture and reveals about the development process for the much-anticipated title, fans can learn a lot more about GTA 6 than they might think, rather than the illegally obtained gameplay footage that ultimately proves little about what the final game may look like.
This is despite Rockstar’s elusive attitude toward the press about GTA 6. In February 2022, Rockstar finally shared that GTA 6 development was underway in a community update on changes for GTA 5 and Online, of all things. This small blurb was Rockstar’s only official announcement about GTA 6 before the leaks came out in September 2022, which forced the company to announce that the leak was legitimate but would not impede the development process.
Though Rockstar as a company might be hesitant about revealing new information regarding GTA 6 and the direction it is heading in, the individuals who work for or have formerly worked for the company have been more liberal with the press. Jason Schreier of Bloomberg has been investigating the production of GTA 6 for several years, and in a July 2022 article revealed a lot about the game and the evolution of Rockstar's writing for GTA 6 and its working philosophies. The developer appears to be heading in a progressive direction away from its roots (or at least is intending to) that very well may change the tone and design practices of the series.
GTA 6 Has A Familiar Setting, A New Leading Woman, & More
According to Schreier, GTA 6 has been in some form of development since 2014, and in the project's early days, it sought to be bigger than anything Rockstar had ever done before. GTA 6’s original code name was Project Americas because the game was going to be so big that it featured portions of both North and South America; however, plans appear to have changed to favor modern-day Miami, which seems to confirm the suspicions about GTA 6's Vice City setting.
GTA 6 will also be the first game in the series to feature a main playable character who is a woman (outside of sprites from the original game). This decision is fitting considering that the game's main story is inspired by Bonnie and Clyde. GTA 6's equivalent for Bonnie will also be a Latina woman, showing the GTA series has an interest in expanding the diversity of its character roster. However, this roster won't be expanding too much, as Shreier confirmed on Reddit that GTA 6 will not be featuring three main characters like in GTA 5.
Rockstar's New Progressive Direction Could Mean A More Inclusive GTA 6
Schreier's Bloomberg article also reveals that, throughout Rockstar's development of GTA 6, the company has been making a deliberate effort to turn its workplace into a healthier, safer environment. Rockstar Studios has long had the reputation of being a bit of work-oriented boys club, where employees are expected to work overlong hours and wage disparity has been an issue, but changes in leadership and societal shifts prior to and during the pandemic have seen the company attempt to dramatically change their reputation. According to Game Rant, gender wage gaps have thus been cut down, employees have been given better PTO policies, and the creative team has taken greater care toward marginalized groups of people.
These major changes at Rockstar may impact GTA 6. In fact, they seem to have done so already: the game's long production and projected 2024 release is partially due to the developer's new resistance to crunch, and the scaling down from Project Americas to a Miami setting provides further evidence that Rockstar seems to be trying to prevent the overworking of employees. What's more, Schreier has said that the game is trying to avoid punching down at marginalized groups like the GTA series has been known to do before. GTA 6 may thus be the beginning of a series shift toward more inclusive gameplay and story, which would be a refreshing change.
Source: Bloomberg, jasonschreier / Reddit, Game Rant