GTA 6 gameplay brings character switching, a Criminal Profile, fuel and 170 animal species

The main source is An Extended Look, the 27-minute gameplay showing Rockstar released on August 27, 2026; according to the studio, it was captured entirely on PS5. The rest comes from developers speaking to the press: Rockstar North's Rob Nelson in interviews with The New York Times, IGN, Famitsu and Flow Games, plus features in Game Informer and Edge. We do not use details from leaks.

The showing demonstrates switching between the heroes: instantly when they are close, with a short camera flight when they are far apart. According to Nelson, some missions lock switching or handle it automatically.

The relationship is a mechanic of its own. You decide whether the heroes are a couple or just partners, and that affects shared actions like holding hands or kissing. If you play a whole day as one hero, the other one texts you, and ignoring them hurts the relationship a little. The character you are not controlling lives their own life: Nelson told IGN that after switching he found Jason in the shower.

The classic five-star wanted level stays, but the logic has changed (according to Nelson in Famitsu and the NYT):

• you only get a wanted level if someone actually saw the crime, as in Red Dead Redemption 2;
• the Criminal Profile remembers your play style: the more aggressive you are, the harder the police respond;
• the Heat system: police have your description, so leaving the search area, changing clothes or ditching your weapon helps; you can't hide a big gun;
• after "Wasted" or "Busted" you lose cash.

According to Nelson, "you can rob pretty much anything": the showing includes stores, gas stations and a phone shop. Cash from a bank is marked and has to be taken to a fence. Cars can be stolen quietly or by smashing a window; older ones can be hot-wired, newer ones need a key-cloning device.

Fuel. Cars need gas; Nelson says it is "pretty fast for a fill up", about 10 seconds. Gas stations also have EV chargers.

Food. Food and drinks give temporary boosts, for example an energy drink for stamina, while fast food and beer affect Jason's weight.

Gym. Workouts are a minigame on the L2/R2 triggers. Three exercises a day for three days in a row raise strength and health; train together and both heroes improve.

The weather has been reworked: rain is local, so one part of the state gets wet while another stays dry, with dynamic clouds and wind. According to Rockstar's VP of art for lighting and rendering Owen Shepard (Game Informer), the game will have hurricanes and tropical storms; how they affect gameplay has not been shown yet.

There are more than 170 animal species: over 60 kinds of birds, 30-plus land mammals, sharks, reptiles, fish and invasive species such as iguanas and rhesus macaques. As in RDR 2, there are rare and legendary animals. The showings include alligators, flamingos, pelicans, manatees and dogs you can pet.

The phone is now a physical object in the world rather than a flat screen. It has video, fitness, banking and a car delivery app. Snapmatic is the in-game social media feed, with influencers, celebrities and people the heroes know.

Safehouses change from chapter to chapter, and the people living there follow a schedule, like the camp in RDR 2. You can buy garages; at first they hold three cars. The map shows gang stash houses and how much cash is inside.

The scale of the work is striking: according to the NYT, the game has more than 600,000 animations, compared with about 55,000 in GTA 5.