GTA VI playthrough with side missions may exceed 80 hours
Developing story first seen 4 hours ago
Rockstar has released its extended GTA VI preview on YouTube, offering a nearly 27-minute look at the game’s world, characters and activities. The footage accompanies new reporting that suggests the game could require more than 80 hours for a playthrough including the main story and some optional objectives, underlining its potentially large scale.
Rockstar North co-studio head Rob Nelson told The New York Times he had completed such an 80-hour run. By comparison, GTA V took players about 51.5 hours on average for its story plus some side quests, while completionists averaged 89.5 hours; GTA VI is due on 19 November at $80, and fans are being warned about fake downloadable demos carrying password-stealing software.
- Rockstar’s extended GTA VI preview is now on YouTube.
- An 80-hour playthrough included the story and some optional content.
- Fake GTA VI demos are being used to spread password-stealing malware.
New here? Start with this
Grand Theft Auto VI is the next major game in Rockstar Games’ long-running Grand Theft Auto series. The games are open-world crime dramas, letting players follow a central story while also freely exploring a fictional city and taking part in optional activities.
The new game is set in the state of Leonida, including Vice City, a version of Miami used in earlier Grand Theft Auto games. It follows two main characters, Lucia and Jason, whose story involves a criminal partnership.
Rockstar’s previous game, Grand Theft Auto V, became one of the best-selling video games ever and remained popular for years through its online mode. The length of the new game matters because players and the industry closely watch whether it offers a substantially larger experience than its predecessor.
Full account
Rockstar Games has offered a longer look at Grand Theft Auto VI, alongside a report suggesting that a typical run incorporating parts of the optional content could take more than 80 hours. Rob Nelson, co-studio head at Rockstar North, told The New York Times that his own playthrough lasted about 80 hours and included the central storyline as well as some additional objectives. The figure is not presented as a confirmed average or as a guide to completing every activity, but it points to a game designed for a substantial time commitment.
The game is set in Leonida, Rockstar’s fictional take on a Florida-like US state, with Vice City among the locations players will be able to visit. Its story centres on Jason Duval and Lucia Camino, a criminal couple whose relationship has been described as an important part of the narrative. The extended footage showed players moving between the two protagonists, echoing the character-switching approach used in Grand Theft Auto V, while reports indicate that player choices may affect how their connection develops.
The nearly 27-minute presentation focused on scenery, character animation, interiors, driving, chases and gunfights rather than providing a detailed explanation of systems or plot. Commentators highlighted the density of the settings, the variety of non-player characters and the apparent visual detail of Leonida. The footage first appeared on Netflix before being uploaded to YouTube, giving Rockstar a formal showcase after unauthorised material had circulated online.
For perspective, community-tracked estimates for Grand Theft Auto V have put a main-story playthrough with some side content at roughly 51 and a half hours, while attempts to finish all content can take far longer. That comparison is only indicative: Nelson’s 80-hour run did not specify how much optional material it contained, and neither report establishes a definitive duration for GTA VI’s main story or a full-completion playthrough. The reports also warn that apparent game demos distributed through unofficial websites may be malicious rather than legitimate releases.
Where outlets differ
Source 1 foregrounds the reported 80-hour playthrough, compares it with Grand Theft Auto V completion times, notes the planned November 19 release and warns about alleged fake-demo malware.
Source 2 concentrates on what the extended footage revealed: Jason and Lucia’s relationship, character switching, Leonida’s environments, graphical detail and the context of recent leaks.
Both describe the extended showcase, but Source 1 calls it almost 27 minutes while Source 2 describes it as a 26-minute preview; this is likely a difference in rounding rather than a substantive contradiction.
More coverage
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by Engadget as “Grand Theft Auto VI could take you more than 80 hours to finish”.