Rumors that Rockstar Games is planning a return to 1980s Vice City in Grand Theft Auto 6 have flooded internet forums and social channels for years. Despite all of the chatter, there still hasn't been any word from the developer about where the next entry of the open-world franchise could take place or when it might release. The radio silence from Rockstar has led many fans to hope that the Vice City rumors could be true, but doubt has been cast on those speculations, and GTA 6 might actually be set in the present once again.
The unconfirmed but widely-circulated "Project Americas" rumors were the spark that ignited a wildfire of Vice City speculations. They claimed that GTA 6 would once again be set in the 1980s and that it would include several different cities players could travel to, including Latin-American inspired locations. The upcoming game is estimated still to be years away, so all of those details remain highly conjectural. On April 12, an established game leaker claimed that GTA 6 would continue Rockstar's trend of setting its latest installments in modern times.
Tom Henderson, a game industry insider who's built a reputation for leaking Call of Duty and Battlefield details, tweeted that the rumors about a 1980s setting were false and that GTA 6 "is modern." He didn't cite any sources to back up his claims, and he also didn't mention anything about the presence of Vice City, so it's still possible that GTA 6 will still include fictional Miami. Henderson has proven to have sources within Activision and DICE but hasn't ever released unannounced information from Rockstar before. Still, past GTA releases suggest that Henderson's statement could be accurate.
Why GTA 6 In Modern Times Makes More Sense
The three most recent numbered GTA releases - GTA 3, GTA 4, and GTA 5 - have been set in the same year they were released in. Rockstar went against that trend with the releases of GTA: Vice City, Vice City Stories, and GTA: San Andreas, which took place in 1986, 1984, and 1992, respectively. The company has continued this trend for 13 years now, and while it's possible that GTA 6 might go back in time like Vice City and San Andreas, it's unlikely given the success that GTA 5's satire of modern-day society has seen.
GTA 5 was riddled with references about Silicon Valley tech companies, fad diets, and many other facets of modern American life. It's these modern references and locations that have kept interest in GTA Online alive for so long because players feel like they're playing in a simulation of the real-life modern city. While Rockstar has effectively satirized past time periods in San Andreas and Vice City, taking Grand Theft Auto 6 back to the 1980s would do away with the feeling of having free reign over a modern city that made GTA 5 thrive for so many years.
Source: Tom Henderson/Twitter