It’s now been almost eight years since the original release of Grand Theft Auto V, and there’s still no word on a sequel.Developer Rockstar Games has kept quiet about the existence of a sixth main GTA game, though it is widely expected that the game is already in development.

Grand Theft Auto remains one of the most popular gaming franchises in the world, despite the fact that it hasn't released a new game in half a decade. The last installment, Grand Theft Auto V, was released in 2013, five years after its predecessor Grand Theft Auto IV. While GTA V hasn't gotten expansion packs like GTA IV, it has remained alive and relevant because of the prominence of GTA Online, which lets players explore the fictional world of San Andreas beyond the confines of the game's story. Even though GTA Online remains one of the most popular games on the world, with a massive following on Twitch, fans of the series have still been waiting for the rumored sixth Grand Theft Auto title.

A recent update to two websites, owned by Take-Two Interactive, the publisher of Grand Theft Auto, adds credence to rumors that the next game is, indeed, in some stage of development. According to Twitter user GTA 6 News (via Dexerto), Take-Two website Rockstarcartel was updated on April 12, 2021. What is notable about this is that this update includes references to Miami, which is widely considered to be the inspiration for the fictional Vice City in the Grand Theft Auto world, which is also rumored to be the setting for GTA 6. In fact, another Twitter user points out that the domain for Rockstarcartel was registered in 2002, the same year that the original Grand Theft Auto: Vice City released.

With GTA V having revisited the titular West Coast city from 2004’s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, many have speculated that GTA 6 could revisit the location from 2002’s Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which was modelled on Miami.Another popular rumour posits that the game will adopt an approach referred to as “Project Americas”, and allow players to travel between multiple cities featured in previous GTA games (these being: GTA IV’s New York-esque Liberty City, San Andreas, and Vice City).

The 1980s' outfits and general aesthetic is probably the one thing that is most easily identifiable to this day. Some of the fashion that characterized the '80s has resurfaced in recent years, so this is the most exploitable element a game like Grand Theft Auto could take advantage of. The neon colors and excess hairspray could admittedly make interesting characters, but then again, is that enough to get new players interested in Grand Theft Auto?.It is not like the 2020s have any lack of subcultures with easily recognizable aesthetics that could be incorporated in a game like Grand Theft Auto, without any real risk of feeling outdated. In terms of character design, it seems like turning to modern trends could actually produce much more versatile and interesting characters than including old GTA references. Of course, this would immediately make characters a little more relatable than referencing people from a 40-year-old era.

Some fans are getting a little impatient when it comes to waiting for GTA 6 information to appear, so they’ve started just blurting out questions at known leakers whenever they tweet anything. While we certainly wouldn’t recommend pestering people online, this time it might have revealed a little tidbit about the heavily anticipated GTA 6.

Well known leaker Tom Henderson, who has previously leaked information about Battlefield 6  and Call of Duty, has stated that GTA 6 will be set in the modern day, rather than the 1980s setting which some people had been hoping for. When asked by someone on Twitter, Henderson retweeted their question and simply said “It’s not set in the 1980s and is modern”.However, while a newly upgraded version of GTA V will be released on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles later this year, it is likely to be some time before GTA 6 will hit shelves. Previous rumours had suggested the game could be ready by 2023, but the effects of the coronavirus pandemic are likely to have caused substantial delays, as has been the case throughout the video game industry