When GTA 6 arrives, GTA 5 will be pushing 12 years old – what's changed in the world since the last mainline Grand Theft Auto game?

The GTA 6 hype is well and truly underway. Not only did 2023 give us our first substantial look at one of the biggest upcoming PS5 games on the horizon, this year also marks a staggering 10 years since GTA 5 launched. That's 10 years of seismic changes, both in the games industry and the world itself, that have completely reshaped how we live, work, and play. 

Developer Rockstar's high-octane action series has become a cultural mainstay, and although GTA 5 might be a decade old, it's looking no worse for wear. GTA 5 set an industry-wide standard, both in terms of its crime spree gameplay and storytelling, as its multiple protagonists held a mirror up to the world to provide some tongue-in-cheek social commentary. It's a game that defined a generation, but the world looks very different now than it did in 2013. With GTA 6 slated to launch at some point in 2025, it's a good time to take stock of all that's changed since we first met Franklin, Michael, and Trevor some 10 years ago – and how these ongoing cultural shifts might impact our GTA 6 experience someday.

What's changed in the word since GTA 5?

6. How we play games

Whether you're a staunch PS5 fan, can't get enough of Xbox Series X, or are lucky enough to own both, it goes without saying that our gear has been given multiple turbo-charged makeovers over the last decade that have boosted graphics, speed, and the general quality of our gaming experiences. GTA 5 was impressive enough when it launched on PS3 and Xbox 360, but two generations of consoles have been introduced over the years since. 

The PS4 and Xbox One emerged hot on Rockstar's heels, arriving in stores just two months after GTA 5 made its debut, while we've been enjoying current gen consoles since 2020. Built for a new generation of hardware, the gorgeous GTA 6 trailer is proof of how much better games can look today thanks to these technological advancements. GTA 6 is sure to benefit from current gen consoles' stunning visual fidelity, and if the assertions of an ex-Rockstar dev turn out to be true, we'll be in for one beautiful new game in 2025.

5. How we interact with each other

The digital worlds of 2013 and 2023 are virtually incomparable. I can't imagine GTA 5's Trevor learning a TikTok dance in his trailer, but pop culture and human interaction are part of what makes Grand Theft Auto games relevant. GTA 6 will need to push these aspects further than ever if it wants to maintain its social currency, reflecting how modern communities experience, interact, and share information with each other. We see this no more acutely than in the GTA 6 trailer, where a TikTok-like news feed introduces us to the world of the game via social media snippets. 

Memes, viral media, and app popularity can be fickle and fleeting at best – TikTok didn't exist until 2016, Vine died back in 2017, and I don't know anyone under 24 who still uses Facebook – but social media is still an ever-booming digital phenomenon that's only growing more complex with time. There is definitely such a thing as being too zeitgeist-focussed; if TikTok goes to ground before the game launches, GTA 6 could end up feeling dated before its time. Still, it seems Rockstar is committed to creating a modern world to reflect what's changed over the last decade – and yes, that world includes fresh memes. 

4. How we live

Devastating plagues of global proportions might be nothing new for humanity in general, but for most of us, the COVID outbreak was the most universally-disruptive medical emergency in living memory. As good as it feels to put the worst of it in our collective rear view mirror, one glint of a silver lining is how many found solace in the world of video games. 

It's unsurprising that GTA 5 experienced a sales boom in 2020, making it the game's most profitable year since GTA 5 launched in 2013. The game provided familiarity, comfort, and safety to returning players while opening up a whole new world to those venturing into Los Santos for the first time. The magnetic, escapist charm that brought people back to GTA 5 (or kept us from leaving in the first place) has held fast despite the events of the last 10 years, and as we move towards GTA 6, our numbers are stronger for it. It feels good to be in the company of long-time fans as well as more recent converts, all with a shared love for a game series that has provided some light in the darkness when we needed it most.

3. Identity of America 

When GTA 5 came out, the American socio-political landscape was totally different. We had yet to experience the Trump presidency, barely anyone had heard of smashed avocado on toast, and the Florida Man meme (via Twitter) had just been born. GTA 6's portrayal of America beach-city life is sure to ruffle a few feathers as it pokes fun at idiosyncratic America-isms that are too ridiculous not to be true. Okay, so GTA 6's return to Vice City is not really showing us the Floridian city of Miami, but to say the similarities aren't deliberate would be a lie.

The GTA games have a tendency to present microcosms of American cultural extremes, putting the most hyperbolic examples of every kind of person under a microscope. It's the kind of ridicule through reverence that steps just shy of being offensive, and the GTA 6 protagonists' Bonnie and Clyde dynamic being hinted at in the trailer could offer more narrative opportunities to comment on life, liberty, and the new American dream post-2013.

2. The games industry

It's been a long time since there were these many eyes on us. From the Xbox Activision deal to Rockstar's parent company establishing an independent label, a lot has changed for video game publishers, developers, and businesses since GTA 5's launch in 2013. There are positives and negatives to this, as alongside some brilliant new games for 2023 and beyond, discussions around game exclusivity and the "console wars" continue to spark often fruitless debate. 

It seems that more people are playing games now than ever before – streaming is now a viable career rather than the YouTuber pastime it was back in 2013, for example – and with that increased audience comes increased pressure to perform. Pair all of the above with how the GTA 6 trailer drop made international news headlines, and it appears the stakes involved with GTA 6 have been massively raised. No pressure or anything, Rockstar, but the world is heavily invested in your next move.

1. Us, the players

No matter where you were in your life back in 2013, you're not there anymore. Whether the last ten years have brought expanded families or painful breakups, international travels or college graduations, no human being is static. You might not even consider yourself the same person anymore, to be honest. That's all totally fine, because Rockstar is not making the same game it put out ten years ago, either. 

No matter whether you've been part of the journey for decades or are getting geared up for your first GTA release, it's the people who play the games that make them special. From subreddits to Twitter threads and beyond, the GTA player community has evolved over the years, incorporating new members and awaiting the next chapter as a unit, a driving force. GTA 6 will be a new game for a new, modern audience, and if the player base's palpable excitement is anything to go by, it seems  something new is exactly what we need.

The best games like GTA are filled with carnage and chaos