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Grand Theft Auto VI Feature Reveals 170 Animal Species and Dynamic Hurricanes

The Game Informer feature also details localized storms, six regions, a Heat system, deeper vehicle security, duo robberies, relationship choices, and activities including billiards, mini-golf, zoos, and air boating.

Mihaela Kicevski3 minutes ago

0 3 5 minutes read

A man drives a convertible with a woman beside him in Grand Theft Auto VI.

Grand Theft Auto VI is getting a closer look at the systems that will make Leonida feel alive, from more than 170 animal species and localized hurricanes to deeper vehicle security, a Heat system, ride-share travel, and relationship choices for Jason and Lucia. Pages from Game Informer’s feature surfaced before the story went live, and the 14-page issue is now available with new details about Rockstar’s open-world game.

Game Informer’s digital issue was scheduled for September 29 and includes 12 unseen screenshots alongside Rockstar interviews. The official issue is available ahead of the game’s scheduled November 19 release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. The full feature fills in details across Leonida’s wildlife, weather, regions, residents, and criminal systems.

All screenshots from the GTA VI story by Game Informer datamined before the article is up
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Leonida will have more than 170 animal species

Rockstar vice president of dynamic art Michael Kane says Grand Theft Auto VI will feature more than 170 animal species across the map. That total includes over 60 types of birds and more than 30 land mammals, along with fish, reptiles, and animals native to Leonida that have not appeared in a Rockstar game before.

Wildlife will span urban and rural areas, inland waterways, the ocean, swamps, and Everglades-inspired wetlands. Different species will occupy different parts of the world as players move between Vice City, the coastlines, waterways, and inland areas. Kane told Game Informer that Rockstar wanted to recreate Florida’s ecosystem across Leonida’s different biomes.

“Florida has a diverse animal ecosystem that we wanted to faithfully include across the different biomes in Leonida.”

Manatees, flamingos, pelicans, alligators, green iguanas, feral cats, cane toads, nine-banded armadillos, and rhesus macaques are among the confirmed examples. Players will also encounter different shark species, whales, rays, turtles, and jellyfish, with aquatic creatures displaying distinct movement behaviors.

Rockstar’s animal art and population teams are researching how each species should look, move, and behave. Animals can show iridescence, bioluminescence, translucency, and different feather types, while new hair and fur systems account for wetness, dirt, matting, clumping, and coat variations. Animal coats and pelts will also support differences in color and texture. Players can track wildlife through Rare, Discoverable, and Legendary categories.

Localized weather will reshape Leonida’s skies

Rockstar vice president of art for lighting and rendering Owen Shepherd says the studio rebuilt the weather technology so conditions can remain localized and persistent instead of changing uniformly across the whole map. The feature describes it as an evolution of the technology used in Red Dead Redemption 2. One part of Leonida can hold clear skies while heavy rain falls nearby.

Fully dynamic cloudscapes will move across the map, ranging from clear winter skies around Vice City to towering cumulonimbus clouds with sporadic lightning during Florida’s summer and autumn. Rain can leave puddles and wet surfaces behind, while rainbows may appear under the right conditions.

Wind will account for offshore breezes, convectional updrafts, nighttime coastal air, and the way buildings block or redirect movement. Hair and debris can move across rooftops, vegetation can bend, and water surfaces can ripple in response. During tropical storms and hurricanes, heavy clouds, strong winds, dense rain, runoff, thunder, and lightning will transform the visual backdrop. The feature does not say how often those events will occur or how they will affect missions, vehicles, and outdoor activities.

Six regions give Leonida different backdrops

Leonida is described as the biggest map Rockstar has created by some degree and roughly twice the size of GTA 5. Its six main regions are built around different sides of the fictional state. Vice City serves as the urban center with Art Deco buildings, beaches, crowded roads, and a major cruise ship port. The Leonida Keys draw from the Florida Keys, while Grassrivers takes inspiration from the Everglades and its history of drug running.

Port Gellhorn focuses on smaller and struggling tourist destinations, including abandoned attractions, inexpensive motels, aging shopping centers, and worn-down strip malls. Ambrosia represents the state’s industrial side with factories, refineries, and a powerful biker gang. Mount Kalaga National Park sits at the northern edge of the state and draws from the culture of the Florida-Georgia border.

Mount Kalaga’s rural spaces include private landing strips, ATV trails, mud parks, mountain bike routes, farms, ranches, a private golf course, beaches, and forested lakes surrounded by live oaks and cypress trees. Streets and roads are only part of the environment. Rockstar is also putting greater attention on rooftops, alleys, and building interiors, while the pause-menu map will use a satellite-style presentation.

RydeMe’s ride-share fast travel can move players through Leonida, and passengers will be able to interact during shared journeys instead of simply disappearing into a loading transition.

NPCs will have more varied bodies and styles

Leonida’s residents will differ in height, body type, musculature, and localized body-fat distribution. Skin details such as freckles, moles, and tanning will also be represented, while tattoos will reflect the cultures and regions found across the setting.

Hair and body grooming will cover a wider range of styles. Clothing can change based on location, social setting, dirt, weathering, and fit, while regional culture will influence how residents look and speak. Rockstar also has a Los Angeles team dedicated to writing NPC dialogue.

That regional approach should be visible as Jason and Lucia move between Vice City’s nightlife, rural towns, industrial areas, and the wetlands. The changes should help the population feel less like a collection of repeated character models as players move between different parts of the map.

Vehicle security will make car theft more involved

Stealing a vehicle will not always mean breaking a window and driving away. Some cars can be taken through familiar methods, while expensive models may require specialized tools because of stronger security systems and trackers. The WAiNK phone app can scan vehicles to reveal their security features, tracking devices, registration costs, and resale value. It can also estimate how much a fence might pay if the vehicle is sold.

Robberies can be handled alone or with both protagonists, giving players room to choose between a loud approach and a quieter one. The chosen method can affect how the police respond. Working together can strengthen Jason and Lucia’s relationship, and some missions will only become available when the pair has enough money to pursue them.

A new Heat system will give police more information about a crime than a simple wanted meter. Officers can gather clues from a character’s appearance and whereabouts, which makes changing hairstyles or clothes, abandoning the getaway vehicle, and splitting up useful ways to reduce attention.

Jason and Lucia’s choices can change the story

Jason and Lucia’s relationship can remain platonic or become romantic, with parts of the story changing according to the bond players build. Earlier details about their partnership also established that ending the romance will not remove either character from the duo.

Large and small decisions can affect the story’s direction, and the feature describes Grand Theft Auto VI as encouraging multiple playthroughs built around different choices. That flexibility extends beyond conversations and mission endings, giving the pair’s criminal work and personal relationship room to develop along different paths.

Leonida offers more than criminal jobs

Free-time activities will include base jumping, billiards, gyms, kayaking, mini-golf, scuba diving, street racing, off-road racing, zoos, air boating, and jet skiing. Alongside the ride-share system, changing weather, expanded interiors, and regional NPC behavior, those activities give Jason and Lucia more reasons to move through Leonida outside the main story.

Grand Theft Auto VI remains scheduled for Nov. 19, 2026, on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Which system do you want to see in action first, the wildlife behavior, hurricane weather, Heat system, deeper vehicle security, or the new activities? Follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.

Grand Theft Auto VI heads to the state of Leonida, home to the neon-soaked streets of Vice City and beyond in the biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet.