Grand Theft Auto VI will feature the largest open world Rockstar Games has built, with its full map reportedly around twice the size of GTA V’s and three times the size of Red Dead Redemption 2’s.
The comparisons were attributed to Rockstar North development lead Rob Nelson by creators who attended recent preview sessions at the studio, giving the clearest indication yet of how Rockstar views Leonida’s scale relative to its previous open worlds.
Content creator TGG, who attended the preview, said Nelson directly compared GTA VI’s map with Rockstar’s previous open-world games. According to TGG’s account, the complete GTA VI map is approximately twice the size of GTA V’s world and three times the size of Red Dead Redemption 2’s map.
Vice City itself is also substantially larger than GTA V’s main urban area. Nelson also reportedly told Brazilian creator Davy Jones that GTA VI’s Vice City is roughly twice the size of Los Santos.
The comparison becomes even more significant when the areas surrounding the cities are considered. Nelson also reportedly said the populated areas outside Vice City are around 11 times larger than the comparable built-up areas surrounding Los Santos, reinforcing Rockstar’s move toward a more densely populated state rather than one dominant city surrounded largely by countryside.
That approach has already been visible in Rockstar’s official material. GTA VI is set across the fictional state of Leonida rather than being confined to Vice City, with Rockstar previously confirming locations including the Leonida Keys, Grassrivers, Port Gellhorn, Ambrosia and Mount Kalaga.
The new Extended Look also provided a much broader sense of that scale. Rockstar showed dense city streets, coastal areas, highways, waterways, rural environments and smaller communities during the roughly 26-minute presentation, which was captured entirely from the PlayStation 5 version of the game.
Nelson has emphasized that the larger map is not simply intended to provide additional empty space. In another recent interview, he described GTA VI as a world where players will frequently be rewarded for exploring areas that are not necessarily highlighted by missions or map icons.
That distinction is important given Rockstar’s previous open-world design. Red Dead Redemption 2 was already considerably more dependent on unmarked encounters, environmental storytelling and discoveries away from its critical path than GTA V.
GTA VI appears to be expanding that philosophy while simultaneously increasing the physical scale of the world.
Rockstar has not published an official square-mile or square-kilometre measurement for Leonida, so the new comparisons should not be interpreted as precise geographical dimensions. Differences in how water, inaccessible terrain and playable interiors are counted can also make direct map-size comparisons difficult.
Still, the latest comments provide a much firmer reference point because they are attributed to Rockstar North development leadership rather than being extrapolated solely from leaked footage or fan map reconstructions.
Before this week, much of the discussion surrounding GTA VI’s map size came from fan reconstruction projects and leaked development material. Community estimates varied significantly depending on how map coordinates and visible landmarks were interpreted.
Rockstar is also placing greater emphasis on density. GTA VI’s Vice City is surrounded by multiple populated regions, while the Extended Look shows a broader range of activities, businesses, interiors and NPC interactions spread throughout the world.
Grand Theft Auto VI launches November 19, 2026 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Rockstar has not announced a PC release date.
With Leonida reportedly twice GTA V’s overall map size and around three times larger than Red Dead Redemption 2’s world, GTA VI is positioned to become Rockstar’s largest open-world game to date.
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