This GTA 6 report is wild and was too ambitious even for Rockstar

The new Grand Theft Auto was set to feature four protagonists and three cities

GTA V car helicopter explosion
(Image credit: Rockstar Games)

One of the original plans for GTA 6 was for the game to feature four main protagonists and three cities before being scaled back by Rockstar Games. 

As reported by Axios, the details were shared in a follow-up to Bloomberg's claims that GTA 6 will have two leading characters in a story that is said to take influence from the infamous US bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde. One of these protagonists will be a female of Latino heritage – the first time this happened in the series, although the original Grand Theft Auto in 1997 technically had female playable characters. 

It's the new report, however, that states GTA 6 is "an ambitious project but with a scaled-down scope for launch". This is believed to be light of the studio taking staff criticism onboard regarding crunch, a term in the games industry for working excessively long hours. surrounding the likes of Red Dead Redemption II and such. 

GTA 6 is expected to take place in a fictionalised version of Miami (similar to Vice City) before being expanded over time with new cities being added, according to the original report. 

A number of Rockstar employees also shared their thoughts on when a release date for GTA 6 could actually happen, with some sayings it's still "two years away" at the least. This stemmed from scepticism at analysts' predictions that GTA 6 will release sometime between April 2023 and March 2024.

At the very least, we know GTA 6 development is officially underway. Rockstar even provided its first update on the progression of the new Grand Theft Auto in July, while confirming support for Red Dead Online will come to an end. 

Earlier this year, Rockstar launched the next-gen versions of GTA V on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, almost nine years after it was first released. Check out T3's Grand Theft Auto V review to see if the open-world blockbuster is worth revisiting. 

To keep up with everything Grand Theft Auto, head to the official T3 GTA 6 hub for the latest news, rumours, leaks and more.  

Matt Poskitt
Freelance Writer

Matt is a freelance writer for T3, covering news and keeping up with everything games, entertainment, and all manner of tech. You can find his work across numerous sites across the web, including TechRadar, IGN, GamesRadar, Tom's Guide, Fandom, NME, and more. In his spare time, Matt is an avid cinema-goer, keen runner and average golfer (at best). You can follow him @MattPoskitt64