Grand Theft Auto 6 will introduce two new protagonists, Jason and Lucia, marking the first playable female character in any of the franchise's 3D instalments. After 13 years since the last mainline release, two postponements, and multiple high-profile leaks, the highly anticipated launch is drawing near. According to BBC News, Rockstar Games has maintained such strict secrecy around the project that even the original creators have not been granted early access to the game.
Dave Jones, who co-created the original Grand Theft Auto, and Brian Baglow, the game's original writer and publicist, remain in the dark about what the developer has produced during its extended development cycle.
"We're all waiting to see what they've done,"Jones explains. When asked whether either has had the opportunity to play the new game before its release, Baglow simply shakes his head. Rather than expressing frustration, he notes that he has already placed a pre-order, demonstrating his confidence in the project despite being excluded from early playtesting.
The original Grand Theft Auto emerged in 1997 from DMA Design, a modest studio based in Dundee, Scotland. Following the studio's success with the puzzle game Lemmings, the team began exploring the concept of a racing game initially titled Race'n'Chase. Sitting in Dundee's Abertay University decades later, Jones reflects on the creative process that led to the game's distinctive identity.
How did the original game stand out from other titles?
At DMA Design, the team prioritised innovation and differentiation.
"At DMA, we always wanted to do something different,"Jones states.
"What was the unique spin we could put on it?"A crucial breakthrough came from a mechanic that now seems fundamental to the series: the ability to exit vehicles. Rather than remaining confined to a car, players could step out, steal other vehicles, and explore on foot.
"All of a sudden you had this interesting mix of gaming coming together,"Jones explains, describing how this simple feature transformed the game's appeal.
The development team initially envisioned a game where players could assume the roles of both criminals and law enforcement officers. However, Jones quickly abandoned the police officer concept, recognising that adhering to regulations would diminish the experience.
"At some point we just said, you know what, it's way more fun playing the bad guy, so that's what the game was about,"he recalls.
Why did the original game take time to gain traction?
Despite its innovative design, the original Grand Theft Auto experienced what Jones describes as a
"slow burn"in initial sales compared to Lemmings. The game required players to experience it firsthand to appreciate its appeal.
"For the whole of the year that GTA came out, it just kept going and selling and selling,"Baglow observes, attributing the sustained success to word-of-mouth recommendations from players who discovered the game's appeal organically.
The game's violent and criminal themes generated significant controversy, sparking parliamentary debates in the United Kingdom and calls for a ban. However, much of this outcry was later revealed to have been orchestrated by the game's publisher, BMG Interactive, as a deliberate viral marketing campaign. Jones emphasises that the development team never deliberately courted controversy.
"We just did things that we felt were fun,"he says.
"We never at any point kind of thought, should we do that? Is it controversial? We never thought that way."
What made the original game's world feel authentic?
Although visually basic, with its top-down 2D perspective and arcade-style graphics, the original Grand Theft Auto established the blueprint for the series' signature satirical approach, evident in subsequent, more technologically advanced instalments. Set in exaggerated renderings of American cities, the game retained a distinctly Scottish sensibility through its humour and outsider perspective. Keza MacDonald, video games editor at The Guardian, characterises the original as
"a deeply satirical game"that
"really takes aim at the hyper-individualist, hyper-capitalist nature of the US."
Partly by necessity due to budget constraints and the expense of securing real-world brand licenses, the development team created fictional brand names and fabricated radio stations that players could tune into while driving and committing virtual crimes. Though some of these creative decisions emerged from practical limitations, Baglow identifies world-building as the element he takes greatest pride in from the original work.
"It's the business names, it's the radio stations, it's the lyrics, it's the DJs,"he explains.
"Every part of that is making you believe that this environment you're in is a big cohesive whole."
How has the franchise evolved since its 1997 launch?
Following the original's success, the series expanded significantly. Two expansion packs set in London preceded Grand Theft Auto 2 in 1999, which introduced rival crime syndicates competing for territory. Grand Theft Auto 3, released in 2001, represented a substantial technical leap, transitioning to a full 3D open world set in the fictional Liberty City, where players followed protagonist Claude through various criminal missions.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City arrived in 2002, capturing the aesthetic and atmosphere of 1980s Miami while chronicling Tommy Vercetti's ascent to criminal power. In 2004, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas shifted the setting to Los Santos, a California-inspired city, following Carl "CJ" Johnson's narrative set during the 1990s. Rockstar Games released Grand Theft Auto IV in 2008, presenting a grittier, contemporary reimagining of Liberty City centred on Niko Bellic, an Eastern European war veteran. Most recently, Grand Theft Auto V launched in 2013, returning players to modern-day Los Santos in a sprawling heist narrative featuring three playable protagonists.
What cultural impact has the franchise achieved?
When Grand Theft Auto V launched in 2013, it generated $1 billion (£760 million) in revenue within just three days, surpassing any entertainment product's achievement at that time. The series transcended gaming to become a cultural reference point recognised and discussed far beyond the gaming community.
"I've seen movies where someone says 'don't go all GTA on me'... it was just surreal,"Jones reflects on the franchise's pervasive influence.
MacDonald observes that while earlier Grand Theft Auto titles drew inspiration from cinema, contemporary films now appear more influenced by the game series than vice versa. Later instalments in the franchise adopted increasingly cinematic presentation while maintaining the distinct identity the series has cultivated. Jones attributes the franchise's status as a cultural phenomenon to its grounding in reality.
"It's not like a lot of games like sci-fi or adventure or fantasy,"he explains.
"There's nothing you have to learn about it, as long as you know a city and driving."
What expectations surround the new release?
Grand Theft Auto 6 is anticipated to exceed its predecessor across multiple dimensions, including scale, scope, and revenue generation. Both PlayStation and Xbox have confirmed that the game has become the most pre-ordered title in their respective digital storefronts' histories. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick stated that GTA 6 pre-orders were "far above expectations" ahead of the launch.
The substantial file size contributes to pre-order momentum. The game requires at least 210 GB of free console storage for installation, prompting many players to pre-order specifically to "pre-load" the game and play immediately upon release rather than waiting for the download to complete. MacDonald emphasises the significance of the moment.
"Everyone is extremely excited for this,"she states.
"It's hoping to be a shot in the arm for the general games industry, but also every player is looking to see what Rockstar's been doing for all this time. It's very rare that we have this one massive game that everybody's going to be, if not playing, then certainly interested in."
Do the original creators wish they were still involved?
When asked whether Jones and Baglow harbour regrets about not being part of the current development, Jones reflects philosophically on his career trajectory.
"I think everybody loves having their time on it, for one, two, three versions,"he says.
"But eventually you want to go off and do other things as well."Baglow adds that witnessing
"the rest of the world fall in love with the game over the last 29 years has just been joyful."He emphasises the profound impact the franchise has achieved.
"It means so much to so many people - it's been fantastic."
When will GTA 6 launch?
Grand Theft Auto 6 is scheduled to launch on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on 19 November 2026. The release follows Rockstar's announcement in November 2025 that it needed additional development time to complete the game. The fictional state of Leonida, where the game is set, is expected to be double the size of Grand Theft Auto V's map, promising an expansive environment for players to explore.
