A decade of anticipation culminated Monday evening with the announcement of “Grand Theft Auto 6,” the sequel to a video game once called the most lucrative single entertainment media product ever.
Series developer Rockstar Games released a highly anticipated first trailer for the game after it leaked on social media sites. The trailer was originally scheduled to show the morning of Dec. 5.
In a minute-and-a-half trailer, developer Rockstar Games gave a glimpse into life in Vice City, the fictionalized version of Miami in a series that has lampooned the peculiarities of modern American civilization. A couple named Jason and Lucia share top billing as the protagonists of what appears to be a “started from the bottom” tale. The trailer showcases various details of Vice City life, from clubbing to crowded beaches, backed to Tom Petty’s 1989 track “Love is a Long Road.” The game is scheduled to release sometime in 2025.
It’s been 10 years since “Grand Theft Auto 5” set sales records, as it earned $815.7 million in a single day, the highest revenue generated by an entertainment product in 24 hours, according to Guinness World Records. In three days, it became the fastest video game to gross $1 billion.
The trailer also shows how life has evolved in the last 10 years. In “GTA 5,” the game aimed its satire at Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook. In 2023, “GTA 6” appears to acknowledge how live-streaming, Instagram Live, TikTok and public freakout videos flood the internet and pop culture. It seems to lean heavy into the “Florida Man” stereotype, the idea that residents of that state are prone to irrational and criminal public behavior. Southern hip-hop fashion and lifestyles also feature in prominence.
“GTA 6” has been the subject of much attention in recent years, with preview images and videos of unfinished gameplay leaking to the public. Rumors have circulated for years that the game would revolve around two criminal protagonists, male and female, set in Vice City. A prankster in Germany became known for crashing live events and TV programs, including Europe’s biggest gaming convention Gamescom in August, demanding to see “Grand Theft Auto 6.”
With more than 190 million copies sold, “Grand Theft Auto 5” is the second best-selling video game of all time after “Minecraft.” It still makes regular appearances in monthly game sales charts in recent years. It continued to earn billions of dollars after release thanks to “GTA Online,” a living, online facsimile of Southern California that millions of people called their second home and playground.