The new Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer showcases more of the game's return to Vice City, what to know

On May 2, Rockstar Games, the developer and publisher behind the "Grand Theft Auto" video game franchise, announced the release date of its most recent installment, "Grand Theft Auto VI".

The game will release in a little over a year on May 26, 2026.

The publisher released a new trailer on May 6 showcasing more of the upcoming title's story, characters, and setting.

The last trailer dropped in 2023 and gave an original estimated release for 2025. Now, after delays, Rockstar has changed their timeline with an official release date and an apology.

"We are very sorry that this is later than you expected,” Rockstar Games said in a social media post. “We hope you understand that we need this extra time to deliver at the level of quality you expect and deserve.”

Check out the trailer here:

Where does the new Grand Theft Auto game take place?

The eighth game in the franchise leaves its stand-in for Los Angeles, Los Santos, and sees its return to Vice City.

Vice City is Rockstar's parody of Miami and Miami Beach.

The upcoming title isn't the game's first foray into the fictional city. It was first introduced in GTA: Vice City in 2002, referencing the 1980s television series "Miami Vice" with its aesthetic and setting being homages to the show, according to Screen Rant.

The series is famous for parodying American culture, and the original 2023 trailer showed how the game took inspiration from real-life viral videos from Florida, according to IGN.

Like the leap between "GTA: San Andreas" and "GTA V", the new game will also explore more of the counties surrounding Miami.

What are the Grand Theft Auto games?

The "Grand Theft Auto" games are open-world action-adventure games that follow a character, or characters, as they build their criminal empire in fictional versions of large U.S. cities like Miami, New York City, and Los Angeles.

The release of GTA V in 2013 saw the introduction of its online feature, GTA: Online, an open-world online multiplayer game that allows players to make their custom character and roam the streets of Los Santos to complete missions, interact with other players, and much more.

How long has it been since the last Grand Theft Auto game?

"Grand Theft Auto V" was released in September 2013 on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles.

The game took place in the fictional city of Los Santos, a parody of Los Angeles, which took inspiration from the L.A. metro area with the Hollywood sign, Venice Beach, the Santa Monica Pier, and other iconic Southern California landmarks making an appearance.

It isn't just L.A. that was translated into the game. Surrounding cities and counties have in-game locations based on them, such as San Bernardino, San Pedro, and Long Beach.

Fans who live in Los Angeles or have visited the area and played the game have even noted how accurate the game's developers were when translating monuments into the fictional universe. Game Rant broke down some comparisons in a 2024 blog post.

The 2013 game returned to San Andreas, a stand-in for the state of California introduced in 2004.

Ernesto Centeno Araujo covers breaking news for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at ecentenoaraujo@vcstar.com.