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GTA 6 newsNov 15, 20262 min read

GTA 6 is the first GTA to encourage empathy, Rockstar says

Rob Nelson of Rockstar North told The Guardian that GTA 6 encourages empathy: a relationship to look after, plans before robberies, a dog to pet and 62 birds.

By Ims

Endgame Tools · Published

Official GTA VI screenshot from Rockstar’s Launch Gallery: Jason and Lucia on a pickup on a hill above Vice City at sunset, birds in flight, deer in the grass
Rockstar Games · Official artwork · cropped
In this article
  1. 01Crime stays, and your actions count
  2. 02A relationship to look after
  3. 03Small jobs first, and a plan before a robbery
  4. 04A dog to pet, 62 birds to spot
  5. 05"You have to take big swings"

Grand Theft Auto VI is the first game in the series to try to encourage empathy, Rockstar North co-studio head Rob Nelson told The Guardian. Asked whether it is, he answered: "I would say so. I would say that it's a product of the story we're trying to tell. We've tried for the first time in a GTA to provide mechanisms that encourage it, for those who want to."

Nelson and Jennifer Kolbe, Rockstar's head of licensing, spoke to Keza MacDonald, who visited Rockstar North, for a hands-on feature in The Guardian's Saturday edition of November 14, five days before the game’s release. The quotes and details below are as GamesRadar+, VICE, outputlag, tbreak and Insider Gaming report them; each one is given by at least two of them.

Crime stays, and your actions count

"Crime is a fundamental part of GTA, at least, up until now, it has been," Nelson said. "We're trying to make sure we're not punishing people for playing the game they are used to… [but] your actions will have some effect on how the game plays out."

A relationship to look after

"The relationship is yours to nurture or yours to lose," Nelson said, and "whether it remains a romantic relationship is in your hands." According to the feature, Jason and Lucia call and text each other when they are apart, and go on dates: the gym, a bar, a meditation retreat or a liquor store stick-up. A button makes them hold hands. Neglecting the relationship has consequences, though the feature does not say how far they go.

It fits what Nelson told IGN: the relationship is built on the time Jason and Lucia spend together, and they stay partners in crime whatever happens to the romance.

Small jobs first, and a plan before a robbery

At the start, Jason and Lucia can only hotwire low-end cars and pick basic locks; bigger jobs come later in the story. "These guys are a younger couple with their backs against the wall," Nelson said.

Before a robbery, you can scope the place out: disable the security cameras or take their footage, and find a back door or a safe code, so the job draws less attention. Skip the preparation and it escalates: in the demo shown to The Guardian, a jewelry store robbery ended with a guard opening fire and a police chase.

A dog to pet, 62 birds to spot

The small gestures point the same way. Jason can ask a passer-by if he can pet her dog, and people react when you interrupt their conversation. Through binoculars, Jason spots a gull on the beach, and it goes into a wildlife logbook that holds 62 types of birds. Game Informer's cover story covers Leonida's wildlife.

"You have to take big swings"

The team "could have made GTA 5.5, and done it faster," Kolbe said. Nelson: "You have to take big swings. It can't be just more of the same."

When GTA 6 unlocks on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S in your country: the exact time.

TagsGTA 6 empathyGTA 6 Guardian interviewRob NelsonGTA 6 relationshipGTA 6 birdsGTA 6 robberies

Frequently asked questions

Is GTA 6 the first GTA to encourage empathy?

Rockstar says so. Asked by The Guardian, Rockstar North’s Rob Nelson answered “I would say so”, and said the team has tried “for the first time in a GTA to provide mechanisms that encourage it, for those who want to”. Crime remains central, and players who play the old way are not punished.

Can Jason and Lucia’s romance end in GTA 6?

Yes. Nelson told The Guardian the relationship is “yours to nurture or yours to lose”, and that whether it remains romantic is in your hands. Dates, calls and texts keep it going, and neglecting it has consequences. Jason and Lucia stay partners in crime either way.

How many birds are there in GTA 6?

62 types of birds, according to The Guardian’s hands-on. You spot them with binoculars and each one goes into a wildlife logbook, as a gull on the beach did in Rockstar’s demo.

Can you pet dogs in GTA 6?

Yes. In the demo Rockstar showed The Guardian, Jason asks a passer-by if he can pet her dog, and does.

Sources

  1. GamesRadar+ — Rockstar knows people want to play GTA 6 for the chaos, but the studio will also "provide mechanisms that encourage" empathy "for the first time in a GTA", by Kaan Serin (November 14, 2026)
  2. outputlag — GTA 6 is the first GTA to “encourage empathy,” Rockstar says, and Jason and Lucia start out hotwiring cheap cars, by Steven Mills (November 14, 2026)
  3. VICE — 6 New GTA 6 Gameplay Details From The Guardian’s Rockstar Interview, by Brent Koepp (November 14, 2026)
  4. tbreak — GTA 6 empathy: what Rockstar has said so far (November 14, 2026)
  5. Insider Gaming — GTA 6 Will ‘Encourage’ Empathy For The First Time in Franchise History, by Grant Taylor-Hill (November 14, 2026)

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Background · Rockstar Games · Official artworkBackground · Rockstar Games · Official artwork