GTA 6 vs GTA 5: map, characters, stars, price and online, side by side

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GTA 6 vs GTA 5 at a glance

GTA V facts are the historical record. The status column is for the GTA 6 cell only, and each row links to our full page on that topic.

The GTA 6 budget figure is a press report, not a Take-Two statement, and the $2 billion number that circulates has no official source; the BBC described it as speculation in 2023. The 30 fps figure is Digital Foundry's measurement of the Extended Look; separately, a creator said Rob Nelson told preview visitors the game ran at 30 fps during development. Rockstar itself has not stated a frame rate.

Map and setting

GTA V put Los Santos and the Blaine County desert and hills in one state, San Andreas. GTA 6 goes to Leonida, Rockstar's Florida, with six named regions: Vice City, the Leonida Keys, the Grassrivers wetlands, Port Gellhorn, Ambrosia and Mount Kalaga National Park. official

On size, the only numbers from Rockstar staff are ratios. Rob Nelson told the creator TGG that the map is roughly twice GTA V's and that Vice City alone is about twice Los Santos. reported Every square-mile figure you see is a fan measurement; our map size page lists them all with their caveats.

Two leads instead of three

GTA V had three men with separate lives: Michael, Franklin and Trevor, and you could jump between them almost any time outside a mission. GTA 6 has two, Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos, and they are a couple. Lucia is the first female protagonist in a mainline GTA since the top-down 1997 original, which let you pick from a cast that included women. See the characters hub.

Switching is tighter too. Rob Nelson told Famitsu that some missions lock you to one character, some force a swap and some let you choose, and that a free switch at all times would be unnatural for the story. reported Previews also describe a relationship between the two that changes with how you play, something GTA V never had.

Six stars, and police who build a case

GTA V topped out at five stars; you cooled off by staying out of the police's line of sight shown on the minimap. GTA 6's HUD shows six stars in the Extended Look, plus icons for what the police know about you: your face, your clothes, CCTV footage, the two of you seen together, your vehicle and your weapon. official Changing clothes or swapping cars is how you shed each one, according to recaps. reported

Six stars is not a first for the series. GTA IV had six, so GTA 6 goes back to IV's ceiling rather than breaking new ground. What the police send at six stars has not been shown. The full system is on the wanted level page.

Price, editions and platforms

GTA V cost $59.99 at launch in 2013. GTA 6 is $79.99 for the Standard Edition and $99.99 for the Ultimate Edition (UK £69.99 and £89.99), with a $20 upgrade between them at any time. official There is no Collector's Edition of the game this time. GTA V's Collector's Edition came with the game; GTA 6's $399.99 collector's box, The Goodtime State - Vice City Collection, is 11 pieces of merchandise with the game sold separately. official The boxed game holds a download code rather than a disc. Details: GTA 6 price, the GTA 6 collector's box and the physical edition.

GTA V spread across three console generations and reached PC in April 2015, about 19 months after launch. GTA 6 is PS5 and Xbox Series X|S only, with a PS5 Pro Enhanced badge on Sony's store. official A PC version has not been announced; the precedent and what to expect are on GTA 6 on PC.

Online: not at launch

GTA Online went live on October 1, 2013, two weeks after GTA V, and is still running. GTA 6 will not repeat that. Take-Two's CEO, Strauss Zelnick, said on September 17, 2026 that the game launches as a single-player experience, with "no recurrent consumer spending anticipated" for the launch. official A multiplayer mode later is reported but not announced; see GTA 6 Online. reported

Tech and scale

• Resolution and frame rate. Digital Foundry measured the Extended Look at a native 1440p, upscaled to 4K, at 30 fps with ray-traced lighting and reflections. reported GTA V's 2022 PS5 and Series X|S version offers a 60 fps mode; GTA 6 has not announced one.
• Animation. A figure reported around the Extended Look puts GTA 6 at more than 600,000 animations, against about 55,000 for GTA V. reported
• Story. About 80 hours in Rob Nelson's own playthrough with some side content, told to The New York Times, against about 31 hours for GTA V's main story. reported Details on GTA 6 story length.
• Budget. Analysts put GTA V's development and marketing at about $265 million. Press reports say GTA 6's budget exceeded $1 billion over five years, but Take-Two has not published a figure. reported

What carries over from GTA 5

A lot of GTA V's world is still here. Weazel News, Pisswasser, Sessanta Nove and Go Postal show up in Trailer 1, Ammu-Nation is back with a TV ad in Trailer 2, and the Extended Look has a livestream feed that Engadget reads as a nod to Lifeinvader, GTA V's Facebook parody. Store robberies and a weapon wheel return, and slow-motion aiming recalls Michael's special ability. Every callback is listed on GTA 6 easter eggs.

Still unknown

• A PC release and a date for it.
• A performance or 60 fps mode on PS5, PS5 Pro or Xbox Series X.
• The online mode: its name, date and whether it is separate from the story game.
• Install size and the ESRB and PEGI ratings.
• Radio stations, where GTA V had 15 music stations at launch.

Where to buy

Pre-order the boxed GTA VI

Amazon

Amazon sells the boxed Standard Edition: a download code in the box, no disc. Amazon delivers from November 12, the day pre-load opens, and standard delivery can arrive later, so check the date at checkout. The game unlocks November 19.

PS5GTA VI · PS5Standard Edition: a download code in the box, no disc, for US and Canadian PlayStation accounts. Amazon delivers from November 12, with release-day delivery for Prime members; it unlocks November 19.Pre-order on Amazon→Xbox Series X|SGTA VI · XboxStandard Edition: a download code in the box, no disc. Amazon delivers from November 12, with release-day delivery for Prime members; it unlocks November 19.Pre-order on Amazon→PS5GTA VI DualSenseSony's official Grand Theft Auto VI Limited Edition controller in white, out November 19.Pre-order on Amazon→

Amazon's Pre-order Price Guarantee: "the price we charge when we ship it to you will be the lowest price offered by Amazon.com between the time you placed your order and the end of the day of the release date." Amazon's help page adds that it "does not apply to lower prices offered through any program that requires a customer to join the program to receive the lower price." Amazon's release date for the GTA VI boxes is November 12.

Amazon's listing offers Prime members release-day delivery on November 12. New members can start a 30-day free trial (Amazon, checked September 28); a trial started before mid-October runs out before November 12, so start it later or keep the membership. Try Prime on AmazonPaid link: Amazon pays GTA6.how a fee if you sign up. As an Amazon Associate, GTA6.how earns from qualifying purchases.

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