(San Francisco) Rockstar Games studio put online a first trailer for the next installment of Grand Theft Auto (GTA) on Monday, ten years after the release of the previous opus of the very popular and controversial action game.
The video broadcast on X and on YouTube shows a setting inspired by Miami, and, for the first time, a main female character. The release of this new opus, called GTA VI, is scheduled for 2025.
The trailer was supposed to be presented on Tuesday, but it “leaked,” said the studio, which therefore chose to release it itself.
The highly anticipated video game will therefore return to “Vice City” (Miami) and once again promises fans the chance to play gangsters, from Florida villas to prison.
According to the parent company of Rockstar Games, the American company Take-Two, the entire franchise has sold 410 million copies worldwide, including 190 million for the last opus GTA V released in 2013 and record holder for sales in the sector in the United States both in volume and value.
But its success has not been without controversy, particularly because of the sulphurous aspect of the game which features individuals engaging in criminal behavior and which, according to its detractors, encourages players to reproduce their character’s actions themselves. , accusations rejected by Take-Two.
The franchise has been banned or restricted in several countries.
In previous installments, players could play as a member of the Italian mafia in New York (or Liberty City), follow in the footsteps of Scarface hero Tony Montana in Miami (Vice City), or step into the shoes of a former member gang in Los Angeles (Los Santos).
On the program: car thefts, robberies, chases, drug sales or street battles, with a soundtrack adapted to the era and style of the city crossed.
In the game, “I can behave in ways that would immediately get me into trouble in real life, or even risk prison or death,” points out Wedbush analyst Nick McKay.
The game is intentionally politically incorrect, offering the player the freedom to act as they wish “with the devil on their shoulder,” McKay adds.
“In everyday life, our behavior is largely dictated by what society allows or prohibits us to do. In GTA everything is possible when you want it and if it has consequences, you just have to restart the game,” he explains.
Beyond the issue of violence, the series has been heavily criticized for its particularly misogynistic representations of women and caricatures of minorities, not to mention the scenes of torture.
This time, the trailer confirms rumors of a scenario with a “Bonnie and Clyde”-style criminal duo, including a playable female character, a first for GTA.