Leaked GTA VI gameplay clips surface online, Rockstar rushes to remove them

Ahead of the official extended look at Grand Theft Auto VI, which is set to premiere on Netflix on August 27 before arriving on YouTube later the same day, leaked materials offering a glimpse of the upcoming game have surfaced online. The leak consists of two roughly minute-long gameplay clips and a screenshot of the game's world map. Rockstar Games has reportedly been actively issuing DMCA takedown notices against people sharing the footage.

The map shows the province of Leonida, a compressed and reshaped version of Florida, featuring a large city to the east resembling Rockstar's take on Miami, greenspace to the west and north, and numerous islands, including a cluster in the south resembling the Florida Keys. The map is dotted with icons including a house, a balaclava-covered face, cars, and even an alligator.

One clip shows protagonist Jason at a waterside home equipped with gym equipment reminiscent of the workout mechanics from GTA San Andreas. After successfully making a basketball shot, he receives a boost to a focus stat, hinting at RPG-style progression mechanics in the new title.

The second clip shows Jason colliding with a delivery truck, killing the driver with a wrench, and earning a two-star wanted level. An icon featuring a devil symbol with a minus sign appears on screen, suggesting an honor or karma system similar to the one in the Red Dead Redemption series. The clip also briefly shows prompts for changing weapon loadouts and storing items, plus a fuel gauge for vehicles, indicating that refueling may be a new gameplay mechanic.

The leaked materials are watermarked with a URL referencing a message about "fighting for gamers' rights." The alleged leaker claims to have released the footage to protest Rockstar's decision to include only a download code, rather than a physical disc, in the game's boxed edition, and has threatened further leaks targeting publishers over other practices deemed anti-consumer.

It remains unclear how old the leaked materials are or whether they accurately reflect the game's current state, especially since Rockstar's servers were breached earlier this year. Grand Theft Auto VI is scheduled to launch on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on November 19.