It’s official: Rockstar dropped the mother of all mics this week by publishing the new trailer for GTA 6 with zero warning.
Clocking in at two minutes and 45 seconds long, it’s an in-depth look at the game’s two protagonists (now confirmed to be Jason and Lucia), as well as the surrounding world of Vice City and the playground of Leonida, where it looks like a decent chunk of the action will be taking place.
Alongside all the shots of people having sex, cars blowing up and sleazy nightclubs are a fair amount of secret clues and in-jokes. Rockstar is famous for adding these in, and for their eagle-eyed fans, spotting them all is a game.
A game which we’re also indulging in. Here are all the references we’ve spotted so far (with more, undoubtedly, to follow).
Fixing some leaks
Could this be a sneaky reference to the leaks that have dogged Rockstar’s own game announcements over the past year?
Very possibly – it’s entirely in keeping with Rockstar’s character. We open with Jason (for it’s now been confirmed that his name is Jason), one of the game’s two protagonists, doing some odd-jobs on a house in what looks like the Vice City/ Leonida suburbs.
When the crotchety landlord Brian (a cameo appearance from Stephen Root, from the looks of things) rolls past to ask what he’s doing, Jason deadpans that he’s “just fixing some leaks.” Interesting – especially given that this trailer dropped without any notice at all. Could this be Rockstar having a dig at its fanbase?
Time to go to the gym
Remember the heady days of GTA: San Andreas? Looks like the weight system and gym mechanics they had in that are being carried across to GTA 6.
The original mechanics rewarded players for putting in the hours lifting weights, with bonuses being added to CJ’s Muscle, Stamina, Fat, and Lung Capacity as a result. Something similar was adapted for GTA 5, of course – so it stands to reason that beachside gym (which itself looks strikingly like the real-life Muscle Beach in Miami) is going to play a more important role in the game than just looking good.
Wonder Whale is here
For those who haven’t visited Florida Keys before, it’s easy to miss the reference – but there is a giant lobster statue called Betsy that has achieved icon status over the years. Of course, Rockstar being Rockstar, that means they’ve done their own version: Wonder Whale. The giant sea creature appears in the background of one of the shots, complete with tourists climbing all over it.
And while we’re looking at the above image, it’s worth noting the amount of times mobility scooters crop up in the footage. It looks like these are making their first-ever in-game appearance as drivable vehicles. Cue chaos.
Phil Cassidy is back… or is he?
One of the more obscure nuggets of lore fans think they might have picked up from the trailer is the reappearance of a very niche character from GTA III called Phil Cassidy.
Phil made his biggest appearance in a GTA spinoff called GTA 3D, and at the time, he was a dishonourable army vet who only had one arm. He was last spotted 2006's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, so he would be an inhabitant of Vice City… and one of the characters in the trailer does bear a startling resemblance to him.
He does have two arms, though. Coincidence, or not? That’s up to you.
Ammu-Nation makes a reappearance
That’s right, the rather disreputable gun supply store that popped up in GTA 5 is back for more. This is where Phil pops up: a TV advert in the trailer tells us that it’s now called ‘Phil’s Ammu-Nation’.
Whether this is a legit expansion of the chain or a very illegal rip-off that Phil has decided to create is yet to be determined, but it seems pretty obvious that the game’s protagonists will be buying their hardware there.
Is that a PS5?
Some eagle-eyed fans have spotted Rockstar poking a little fun at Sony in the trailer: one shot taken indoors shows a controller resting on a table, with what looks rather like the PS5 Pro lurking in the background. What will it be called? Let’s hope Rockstar don’t bottle it and come up with something Pißwasser-worthy.
