Rockstar Games and Netflix released an extended 26-minute preview of Grand Theft Auto VI on Thursday, offering the clearest look yet at the upcoming title. The footage, captured on a PS5, shows the game retaining the series’ core elements of exploration, driving, crime, shooting, and cinematic story scenes, but with markedly improved graphics and more detailed, densely packed environments. The presentation aired on Rockstar’s YouTube channel and the GTA VI website at 9PM ET, following a series of earlier video leaks that Rockstar described as heartbreaking.
A central focus of the preview is the partnership between protagonists Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos. In one sequence, the player appears to control Duval as he leans out of a car window to shoot at pursuing police while Caminos drives. In another scene, control switches to Caminos at the wheel while Duval and another character fire at law enforcement. A separate mission shows the pair split up, with Duval acting as security and engaging enemies from behind cover on an upper floor while Caminos sneaks through a different area to avoid detection, including a moment where button prompts appear to help her escape an enemy’s grasp.
Beyond the scripted action, the video offered brief glimpses of gameplay systems, including a weapon wheel, boat driving, basketball, underwater diving, track racing, and parachuting. The game’s scope is reportedly massive, with Rockstar North co-studio head Rob Nelson telling The New York Times that a February playthrough took 80 hours, covering the main story and optional content. Rockstar also told the NYT that the map is three times the size of the playable map in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Players will be able to switch between Duval and Caminos at any time, according to previews from IGN, and can also choose to have one character tag along while exploring or play as only one of them. The relationship between the two is not fixed as romantic, and the game includes a specific mechanic for holding hands, leaving that dynamic to player choice. The in-game social media feature Snapmatic also returns, though posting is disabled because the characters are on the run and do not want to leave a digital footprint.
The game brings back the six-star wanted system, and police can remember the player’s appearance, meaning changing outfits may be necessary to evade them. Car theft will also be more nuanced, with expensive vehicles harder to break into and certain equipment required for specific cars. The preview followed multiple apparent leaks from a person or group calling itself CyberLeek, which Rockstar said were heartbreaking. Grand Theft Auto VI is scheduled to release on November 19th at a starting price of $79.99, and will not be available on a physical disc.
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