For all of Rockstar Games' technical prowess, the genius of Grand Theft Auto lies in the beautiful simplicity implied by its title: brazenly commit crimes, and have a good time doing it. Grand Theft Auto 6 is set to be an industry milestone for open world density and attention to detail, and what we've seen of GTA 6 so far is still pinned on that promise. It remains as strong a hook in 2026 as it was in 1997 watching pixels skid across a screen from a top-down perspective.
Rockstar's commitment to its criminal fantasy means it remains utterly unreplicable. As close as the likes of Volition Games' Saints Row or Sleeping Dogs from United Front Games have come, I always find myself describing them as 'like GTA but…' There's a purity to Grand Theft Auto's crime sandboxes – simply existing in the world (and causing havoc within it) is just as valid as following their crime caper storylines. Even when cutting about off-leash, building up Wanted meter and going wild with vehicles and weaponry, it feels like you're doing so in a convincing if exaggerated world.
It's here that GTA 6 is really taking Rockstar Games' promise to the next level, as Bonnie and Clyde-like couple Lucia Caminos and Jason Duval take us on a spree across the sweeping Leonida state – Rockstar's riff on Florida.
Developer: In-housePublisher: Rockstar GamesPlatform(s): PS5, Xbox Series X/SRelease date: November 19, 2026
Which isn't to say that GTA 6 isn't innovating. Far from it. Only a developer with such a storied history as Rockstar Games would have the knowledge and confidence to identify Grand Theft Auto's integral foundations and build on top of those. Rather than reinventing any element of GTA's mechanics from scratch for the sake of it, it feels like GTA 6 is interrogating the purpose of every design decision the studio has made until this point, with a commitment to taking them further without diluting the joy of chaos.
In fact, the recent deeper dive into GTA 6 puts the likes of Red Dead Redemption 2 into a new perspective. Cowboy outlaw Arthur Morgan's adventure is already one of the best open world games ever made, with an emotional story and a staggering amount of detail and little touches that bring the digital world to startling life – walk into the Saint Denis theater to take in an actual stage show that changes depending on day of the week; Arthur's hygiene can get seriously bad if you don't give him time to relax with a spongebath; and of course, horse testicles are affected by the weather. These are seriously impressive details, making RDR 2 easy to get lost in, but also many of these elements were easy to ignore as you followed Arthur's journey through to its end.
Now, after taking in the full GTA 6 extended look and getting to see the game in action across several missions and side-activities, RDR 2 feels like a training ground or precursor for the type of detail we're seeing across Leonida. The difference here is that most of those finer details aren't just for show, but have an impact on core gameplay while being so natural they avoid being intrusive or cumbersome.
There's a reason GTA 6's gameplay reveal kicked off with following Jason and Lucia into a violent police raid as a drug pickup goes south. The fidelity of the world is immediately striking as the pair stroll up to the shady establishment. The camera moves in and out of cinematic scenes fluidly as they make their way up many floors to complete the hand-off. Then, guns are drawn and the action explodes into motion – cops shooting lead before anyone has a chance to speak, bodies entangling and slamming through thin drywall.
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