For the first time in nearly 20 years, Grand Theft Auto is heading back to Vice City. Returning to the fictional, Miami-inspired city to rundown strangers and get the lyrics to “Love Fist” stuck in our heads, Grand Theft Auto VI is no longer a twinkle in a programmer’s eye. After years of silence, delays, speculation, and leaks, the latest in Rockstar Games’ massively successful series finally (finally) has a trailer.
The upcoming game takes on a Floridian tone as our heroes make their way through the Natty Ice-soaked streets of Rockstar’s latest. The trailer confirms a number of rumored aspects, including the presence of two main characters, a man and, get this, a woman. The first we meet is Lucia, the first female playable character to break Rockstar’s long-enduring glass ceiling. Taking inspiration from Springbreakers and American flag bikinis purchased in the Marlboro catalog, Grand Theft Auto VI’s first trailer unleashes its inner Florida Man, playing into the unpredictability of doing crime in a state where a crocodile can just wander into a local Exxon Tiger Mart. Plus, there are fanboats!
The trailer actually popped up online earlier today, leaking early in an appropriate fashion for this game, which is probably the most anticipated video game in the world. Of course, the trailer spread on Twitter, the anything-goes bacchanal where pirated trailers, movies, and pornography can sit comfortably with the most ludicrous political opinions you’ve ever heard. Though the trailer was quickly removed and the account suspended (it’s always interesting to hear about when and where moderation happens on the world’s foremost hellsite), Rockstar tweeted, “Our trailer has leaked, so please watch the real thing on YouTube.”
As for when we’ll actually play the game, well, that’s still years away. The trailer confirms a 2025 release, presuming the game is finished by then.