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Finally, right? Rockstar Games has announced Grand Theft Auto 6. It only took one decade, which, in gamer years, is equivalent to eons beyond remembrance. But where does GTA 6 take place this time? It certainly looks like a fresh new location, especially for those who were brought up on GTA San Andreas, GTA 4, or GTA 5.
Thus, with our aching backs and creaky knees, allow us gamer ancestors to regale you with tales that will explain the upcoming GTA 6 location and why it’s still a significant milestone for the series despite being an old playground.
Where Does GTA 6 Take Place?
You’ve probably guessed it already after watching the trailer, GTA 6 takes place in Vice City. But wait, there’s more to that.
It appears that Rockstar Games is pulling off another GTA San Andreas. Instead of featuring just a city, GTA 6 will actually take place in a whole state called “Leonida,” much like the fictional San Andreas, which is a state with three cities.
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All Client Jobs in GTA OnlineFlorida in the US serves as the basis for Leonida, which is the fictional state in which Vice City is located. As you also might have guessed already, Miami Florida is the prime inspiration for Vice City. So you can expect beaches, neon-lit establishments (hopefully as a remnant of the 1980s), and alligators sharing the same gutter territory as the vagrants.
Based on the announcement, GTA 6 will also take place in contemporary times like GTA 5, as indicated by the brief Instagram or TikTok reels in the trailer. That’s partly one of the reasons why this new direction for GTA is special.
Vice City Was Long Overdue
The other huge reason why GTA 6 is going to be rather important, especially for old fans, is that the last mainline game that took place in Vice City was released more than two decades ago. It was GTA Vice City and that was back in 2002.
Technically, GTA did revisit Vice City with GTA Vice City Stories in 2006 but it was a limited release for the PSP (a Stone Age relic) and older PlayStations. Besides, Vice City Stories didn’t change much in Vice City back then in terms of appearance.
In fact, the city of Los Santos (based on real-life Los Angeles) got the revisit treatment earlier. Chronologically, Vice City should have been next in line after GTA 4 revisited GTA 3’s Liberty City. GTA Vice City notably came after GTA 3 and before GTA San Andreas.
This time around, Vice City got a major facelift. Moreover, the developers expanded its surrounding area and lore. Speculations and leaks even point to three cities in GTA 6’s Leonida state, though that’s something you take with a grain of extra concentrated sea salt.
With that said, GTA San Andreas did manage to feature three cities. It’s not too far-fetched for GTA 6 to innovate with three cities in one big state.
What Else is Overdue? A Female Protagonist
GTA 5 notably received flak from critics back then due to its misogynistic content and male-dominated protagonist cast. This time, GTA 6 is re-balancing this element for modern audiences.
For GTA 6, there are two protagonists in a Bonnie-and-Clyde, partners-in-crime premise. One of them is Lucia, the female lead, and the other is Jason, the male lead. This also marks the return of a playable female protagonist for GTA‘s story. It’s supposedly going to play out like GTA 5, where you can switch between the multiple protagonists.
Already, you can probably tell where the climax and the drama of the story will come from. You can recall that GTA stories are no stranger to backstabbing and lover/partner betrayals. Even GTA 3 kicked off its plot with that kind of drama. GTA 5 also gave you a tough RPG-esque choice of killing off one of the protagonists.
It remains to be seen whether GTA 6 will present players with that kind of dilemma. With both the protagonists being lovers, that kind of ending is bound to be more personal and definitely more special. All that’s left is to wait until 2025, just in time for the great-grandkids.
