Ahead of its Netflix gameplay premiere on 28 August, Rockstar has unveiled more details for Grand Theft Auto VI, with the game bringing back a fan-favourite RPG-esque feature from 2004’s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, where eating and exercising would affect a character’s build.
Revealed as part of a cover story for Dazed Magazine, Rockstar revealed new information surrounding the game’s emergent gameplay, most notable of all being that players will be able to work out and eat to affect the protagonists’ bodies. Food will affect Jason and Lucia’s weight, while actively exercising will visibly tone their muscles.
This marks the return of a feature seen previously in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, where the main hero, CJ, could get fat if he ate too much, or buff if players took the time to hit the gym. This not only caused a visual change in the character model, but also affected the players stat too, increasing or decreasing factors like stamina or melee damage. While later games in the franchise did away with the system, it’s finally returning for Grand Theft Auto VI, and this time, it seems like the studio will further flesh it out.
Apart from bodily changes surrounding eating and exercising, Rockstar also teased that if players spend too much time without sleeping, the characters’ features will also start to deteriorate, which means they might start to look sleep-deprived, although the studio did not clarify the specifics of such negative effects. It’s also unclear if these RPG elements would impact actual gameplay like San Andreas, although it’s likely the game will feature some sort of stat system like those seen in the 2004 title, as well as its predecessor, 2013’s Grand Theft Auto V.
Additionally, the game will also feature seamless character switching, allowing players the choice to either play as a couple or go off and cause chaos independently. The article also teased that the relationship between Jason and Lucia will be affected by a player’s choices, and that their actions might have “repercussions that cut much deeper” than Rockstar’s previous titles, such as the Honour system in the Red Dead Redemption franchise.
Based on these new details, it’s clear that Rockstar is aiming to create one of its most interactive and immersive games to date with Grand Theft Auto VI, and while this information is merely a tease for now, fans don’t have to wait much longer to see the game in action, with its first extended gameplay look release on Netflix on 28 August, followed by a YouTube version shortly after.
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
