Since the release of Grand Theft Auto V way back in 2013, people have been talking about what we can expect from a hypothetical Grand Theft Auto VI. Will it be set in Vice City? Will it feature multiple protagonists? Will it even have a single-player mode at all? These are all things we simply don’t know right now, but of course, rumours are swirling as they always do. While we don’t have any concrete information about GTA 6 as of yet, we thought it would be fun to collect all the rumours we’re hearing about the game. Here are the latest GTA 6 rumours for 2022.

The GTA 6 release date will be 2024-2025

Current rumours are pointing to a 2024-2025 release date for GTA 6. This is corroborated by prominent leaker Tom Henderson, who said in July 2021 that GTA 6 was targeting a release date for these years. This information was given further credence by industry stalwart Jason Schreier, who backed it up by saying that everything he’s heard about GTA 6 “matches up with” what Tom Henderson has said about the game. Schreier and Henderson’s assertions that GTA 6 will launch in 2024 at the earliest make sense given that Rockstar is still firmly focused on GTA 5.

GTA 6 will launch for current-gen consoles

Each generation of consoles has played host to either one or two Grand Theft Auto generations. GTA 3, Vice City, and San Andreas could all be considered part of the same generation, thus giving the sixth console generation a single GTA round. The seventh fared a little better, with both GTA 4 and GTA 5 releasing on PS3 and Xbox 360, although many said that GTA 5 had no business launching on these consoles because that version of the game is technically flawed. As such, we can expect GTA 6 to be the first current-gen GTA to launch (not counting the inevitable GTA 5 re-release, of course).

GTA 6 could be set in Vice City

Since Grand Theft Auto 4 was set in an updated version of Liberty City and GTA 5 moved the action to San Andreas, it’s not unreasonable to expect GTA 6 to be set in Vice City, which would complete a trilogy of PS2-era city reboots. Of course, Rockstar would have its work cut out for it making Vice City feel like a relevant place in the modern day, so there’s a chance that GTA 6 could go back in time. However, one thing to note here is that Rockstar has previously said it wants to make a single game with all of its cities present so players can “fly between them” and visit their favourite areas. Could this be the setting for GTA 6? We can but hope.

We could see multiple protagonists in GTA 6

Another big rumour for GTA 6 is just how many protagonists the game will star. After all, GTA 5 had three protagonists you could switch between over the course of the story, so there’s a good chance GTA 6 will do the same thing. However, it’s also worth noting that Rockstar didn’t continue this experiment in Red Dead Redemption 2, opting instead for a single protagonist. This could show that the company isn’t convinced multiple protagonists worked over the course of a sandbox adventure, so we could also see a return to one protagonist for GTA 6. Some rumours suggest it could be someone mixed up in the Rio de Janeiro drug trade.

Online will be a big focus

According to a Kotaku rumour (which is admittedly from back in early 2020), GTA 6 is already in development. Its schedule will focus on a smaller launch, with updates released periodically in the manner of MMOs like Final Fantasy XIV (or, indeed, like GTA Online). Given how much of a rip-roaring financial success GTA Online has been for Rockstar, it’s likely we can expect a similar online focus in GTA 6, if indeed it ever happens. Some noises have been made about a persistent online world in the manner of Fortnite, one which constantly changes and gets different features based on what content is being released at the time.

Development on GTA 6 could have stalled

Given investigations into the culture of crunch inside Rockstar, many are saying that development on the next GTA instalment has stalled. This could be due to management wanting to implement reforms to show that it isn’t making its employees crunch anymore, but it could also be because GTA 6 was being developed using a crunch mentality, so the work being done on the game needed to be scrapped. There’s also the COVID pandemic to consider, which has likely impacted Rockstar in the same way that it has done for other developers, making it harder for team members to meet and discuss creative ideas.

It could be some time before we hear about GTA 6

Rumours aside, let’s get one thing straight: it could be a very long time indeed before we get a GTA 6 reveal from Rockstar. The company is still hyper-focused on making sure GTA Online works and that Red Dead Online is supported, so right now, it’s not likely that GTA 6 is a priority. If the company is working on it, then the game is definitely not ready to be shown yet, so we’re going to have to wait just a little longer for information about it. One thing’s for sure, though: there’s a huge amount of demand for GTA 6, so it would definitely be in Rockstar’s best interest to start working on the game if it hasn’t already.