A while back, GTA VI saw a huge leak of information, and while we don’t condone the act of leaking, and how it impacts and challenges developers, it’s hard to ignore the excitement these details garner for an audience.
For a game as big, in scope, as this, we want to report the possibilities while reminding readers that leaking severely damages, and can sometimes delay, our favourite games. Hopefully, we’re close to the official launch of a trailer, but for now, let’s explore the biggest leaks that we hope see the light of day.
New map - Vice City
We already know that some of GTA VI is set in Vice City, this has appeared in a lot of the leaked information. Vice City has already been visited by players before, but that was a few decades ago, in the 1980s. Much of it has likely been modernised and updated. From what we’ve seen of the leaked map, we can gather a lot of information about the different counties of boroughs of the city.
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Based on what has been viewed, there are plenty of minimarts and liquor stores; a football stadium is present for the Vice City Mambas; towards the coast, there’s a marina and a pier too. With Vice City based loosely on Miami, we could hazard a guess that we’ll also see a nuclear power plant as well as a large area based on the Everglades.
Another section of the map is dedicated to a place called Port Gellhorn which could be based on Latin areas as several locations seen were pulled directly from Panama City. Port Gellhorn may be a smaller, adjacent part of the map as there aren’t as many points of interest. Though it would still be pretty large compared to other game environments.
Female protagonist
A long-time request that has come up many times in the past, is having a female protagonist. Every Grand Theft Auto game, including the spin-offs, has featured male central characters. However, with the launch of GTA VI we will see Lucia enter the world of crime. At this point, it’s hard to tell how her story starts, but we know that between her and the second character, Jason, is a love affair similar to that of Bonnie and Clyde.
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It has been noted that the salons and stylists throughout the map now offer a makeup option, which should mean players have some customisation options for Lucia.
New police systems
To shake up the police in GTA VI, it’s looking like the star system and wanted level will be expanded. In the original leak video, which showed a robbery at Hank’s Waffles we saw a note with the wanted level that said Full Description, which seems to suggest that a witness has seen your face. There’s also Full Vehicle Description, that suggests a witness has clocked your getaway vehicle in detail. This came with a text prompt that says “Any vehicle you are seen entering will be known by the law.”
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Of course, this could be a note to the dev team and be hidden from players as the game nears release. However, there is a note regarding the NPCs in this scenario; when the Lucia is inside the building, a female NPC has a yellow icon above her head. When Lucia leaves, it begins to flash, and after the cops pull up it changes to red. This could be part of the ‘witness’ system that changes as your actions do.
Possibly more than one country
This one should come with a heaping of salt for you to pinch, but fans who have scoured the leaks have noticed the possibility that more than one country is included in GTA VI. Both Canada and Mexico have mentions in the game, plus there was an image that showed the Canadian and Mexican flags next to the stars and stripes. Of course, these could just be mentions, but with the map being as large as it is and with Rockstar wanting to redefine the game, a large expansion is possible.
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There is thought that, as the map features a large body of water, this could provide the border between countries that could be travelled in real-time. Oceans have always been large in Grand Theft Auto, but this one would be mammoth.
Age and growth
Between GTA V and Red Dead Redemption 2, Rockstar managed to develop a system to show the character aging. It’s usually seen in beard and hair growth in the main characters. This system has been noticed somewhat in the video leaks we’ve seen. As these characters to naturally age over days, it makes sense to show this visually.
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It’s also noted in the leak documents that weight gain and muscle gain - and loss - have also been noticed on Lucia and Jason, which shows a more dynamic ‘reality’ and will round out the experience. Both of these additions would allow for more interactivity with haircuts and beard trims.
Shared inventory
In some of the leaked screenshots it was noticed that along with solo inventories for the central characters, there will be a shared inventory system. This should allow for players to give their partner in crime specific guns, equipment and items relevant for the scenario. For example, if you’re told not to use lethal violence, you could take the partner’s weapon away.
This addition also has the possibility of giving your companion things to carry if you don’t have space, much like in games like Starfield. Along with shared inventory, there will be several ways to interact with your partner, including a ping system, as well as commands to semi-control them during missions.
Money laundering
If you’re going to steal money - possibly from the new robberies activity - you’re going to need a way to clean it. GTA VI has the depth that we can’t just stuff dollar bills in our pockets and call it good. Like any proper career criminal, you’ll need to launder the money to clean it and keep it away from authorities.
This is where business owning will come into play. We’ve seen an icon via the leaks that shows a dollar symbol inside a washing machine. We can safely assume that these businesses will require investment and return a set amount of money per day or month as fresh laundered bills get deposited into your account.
Improved AI
There are several instances of possible improved AI behaviours; in the Waffle robbery video we see police AI adjust their height by crouching or standing, depending on the environment in front of them. They’re also seen lifting their guns up above the roof of a car to get a better aim. For NPCs, it’s noted that they behave more like a player might, rather than existing on a programmed track. They will enter buildings and persist inside, they will also travel in groups and converse, much like we saw in Red Dead Redemption 2.
These improvements will help within cutscenes too. So, if the player character isn’t following an NPC while they talk, the AI is smart enough to have the NPC track the player, which we see in games like Cyberpunk 2077.
Hacking
There seems to be a full blown hacking system in GTA6, which would make a lot of sense given the competition in Watch Dogs and Cyberpunk 2077 both heavily focus on hacking and technology. Hacking equipment can be seen in clips, mostly related to hijacking cars - Tracker Jammer, Immobiliser Bypass. Then a USB Drive and an Auto Dialler could mean we’ll be able to pull off scams and hack laptops and smart devices.
It seems that stealing cars will take more effort and require more steps. We have the electronic equipment for modern cars, but a ‘slim jim’ has been seen which could be used to jimmy locks on older cars. This seems to round out a more complex system giving players more options to pull off different thefts.
Little Details
There are a lot of smaller details to get excited about, many of which feel inconsequential, but will go a long way to fattening up the world as a whole. Things like smoking, which can be equipped like a weapon (cancer kills, makes sense), and the central characters can eat and drink directly from the inventory. For some reason we’ll be able to buy gumballs from gumball machines; the lighting system is similar to Red Dead Redemption 2, which will give more ambient effects to characters.
Other small details include the possibility for your clothes to become dirty as you play; collectible car parts and also hats could make an appearance. Cars have improved a lot from the looks of things, vehicles feature heavier steering giving them more control, and feature improved damage visuals so your car will show more direct damage to the zones that get hit.
And this is all on top of the hundreds of activities!
Featured Image Credit: Rockstar GamesTopics: GTA Online, GTA 5, GTA 6, Rockstar Games