GTA 6 'connected universe' theory gains traction as Red Dead Redemption 2 easter eggs continue

Rockstar Games fans believe that they may have found another GTA 6 and Red Dead Redemption 2 theory as the shared universe conversation continues to gain traction.

Ever since GTA VI was officially revealed with its first trailer in December 2023, hype for Rockstar’s next Grand Theft Auto has continued to build, while fan theories have run wild.

Some fans believe Jason and Lucia could be descendants of Arthur Morgan and his one true love, Mary Linton. While that remains unconfirmed, there are established connections between GTA VI and Red Dead Redemption 2, including RDR2’s presidents appearing on GTA VI’s banknotes and both games featuring the same gun manufacturer.

What’s the latest GTA 6 and Red Dead Redemption 2 shared universe theory?

The latest fan theory is courtesy of Reddit user DartBoardEater. “RDR2 states will have license plates in GTA 6, and we've already seen some of them,” they suggested.

Sharing a few (some blurry) screenshots featuring close-ups of GTA VI car licence plates, DartBoardEater believes that they could be based on the fictional states of Red Dead Redemption, which in turn are inspired by real states in the USA.

The state comparisons include New Hanover/American Plains states, New Austin/Arizona, Lemoyne/Louisiana and Ambarino/Colorado. To be fair, while some of the images aren't the clearest, there are some similarities, so they may have a valid point.

Plus, given the two other confirmed connections suggesting that GTA VI and Red Dead Redemption could be set in the same universe, it’s certainly not outside the realm of possibility.

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What do GTA 6 fans think of the latest RDR2 connection?

“This is actually not the worst take possible,” replied Jugeboi. “I hope you’re right,” added eDawnTR.

“There's also a scene where a bunch of bikes are robbing a Gruppe Sechs van, and one of the bikes has an Alderney license plate (Yellow, resembling New Jersey),” explained MartyTheGamer.

“I think there will be fictional versions of different states’ license plates, but I’m pretty sure Rockstar says RDR is a separate universe, and the states aren’t the same, so I doubt we’d see RDR states,” said peak82.

If what peak82 says is true, and we have no reason to doubt them, how does that explain the Red Dead Redemption presidents appearing on dollar notes in GTA VI, and both franchises featuring the same gun manufacturer?

READ MORE: GTA 6's successor at Rockstar reportedly surfaces, and it's not Red Dead Redemption 3

What do we know about the GTA 6 story?

“Vice City, USA. Jason and Lucia have always known the deck is stacked against them,” reads the synopsis of GTA VI.

“But when an easy score goes wrong, they find themselves on the darkest side of the sunniest place in America, in the middle of a criminal conspiracy stretching across the state of Leonida — forced to rely on each other more than ever if they want to make it out alive.”

Grand Theft Auto VI releases on November 19, 2026, on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.