Vehicle combat has been a defining feature of the Grand Theft Auto (GTA) franchise since the late 1990s, and Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA VI), scheduled for release on 19 November 2026 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, is anticipated to push the system further than any previous entry (Rockstar Games, 2026). Set in the fictional US state of Leonida — a parody of Florida that includes Vice City, the Leonida Keys, Grassrivers, Port Gellhorn, Ambrosia and Mount Kalaga National Park — the game places the criminal duo Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos at the centre of high-speed, gun-laden chases across highways, swamps, beaches and dense urban neighbourhoods (Wikipedia, 2026; GTA Wiki, 2026). Built on the Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE) and benefiting from a budget rumoured to exceed US$1–2 billion, GTA VI's vehicle combat is positioned as a generational leap in fidelity, physics and tactical depth (Wikipedia, 2026).
Drive-by shooting — firing a sidearm or compact weapon from a moving vehicle — has historically been one of the most iconic mechanics in the series. In GTA VI, the dual-protagonist structure is expected to overhaul this system fundamentally. Trailer footage and the official Rockstar website depict Lucia and Jason operating as a co-ordinated pair, with one driving while the other leans out of the passenger window to suppress pursuers (Rockstar Games, 2026). This builds on the partner-driven shootouts shown in the second trailer, where Lucia is repeatedly framed with a firearm in hand during escapes (Wikipedia, 2026).
Mechanically, observers expect GTA VI to expand the 360-degree aiming first introduced in Grand Theft Auto IV and refined in V, allowing the player to lean fully out of side windows, fire backwards over the seat, or shoot through the windscreen at the cost of obscuring vision with cracked glass. Leaked development footage analysed by The Guardian showed work-in-progress animation tests that included contextual cover behind vehicle doors and the ability to use the car body itself as ballistic shielding (MacDonald, 2022, cited in Wikipedia, 2026). When the player is the driver, single-handed pistol fire is expected to return, while the AI-controlled partner can be directed to focus fire on specific targets — a system that draws on the buddy commands previously seen in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Beyond hand-held firearms used from a vehicle, GTA VI is also expected to feature weaponised vehicles themselves. The GTA Wiki notes that Leonida's setting, with its drug-smuggling boats, swamp airboats, motorcycles, muscle cars and aircraft, provides a natural canvas for vehicle-mounted weapons such as boat-mounted machine guns, helicopter miniguns and the armoured SUVs glimpsed in promotional screenshots (GTA Wiki, 2026). The franchise's track record in Grand Theft Auto Online — which introduced rocket-equipped motorcycles, weaponised technicals, Oppressor hoverbikes and armed aircraft — strongly suggests these systems will return in expanded form for the single-player campaign and the "significant online mode" Rockstar is developing alongside it (Wikipedia, 2026).
Ramming and physics-based combat are likely to be central. The RAGE engine's improved deformation model means collisions should produce more realistic damage states, with crumpled body panels affecting handling, tyre blow-outs forcing drifts, and engine fires from sustained gunfire eventually causing detonation. The Leonida Keys' waterways further introduce naval combat — speedboats trading fire during smuggling runs — while the rural Everglades-inspired Grassrivers area provides space for off-road pursuits involving ATVs and pickup trucks (Rockstar Games, 2026; GTA Wiki, 2026).
GTA VI's vehicle combat will be contextualised by an overhauled wanted system. The game world parodies modern American policing, with explicit references to police body cameras and updated tactics (Wikipedia, 2026). This suggests that drive-by activity may trigger more aggressive and technologically aware police responses — PIT manoeuvres, helicopter spotlights, road-block deployment and potentially licence-plate recognition — forcing players to switch vehicles or disable cameras to break pursuit. Civilian AI is also expected to react more realistically, with panicked drivers swerving, ducking or recording incidents on in-game phones, feeding the satirical social-media systems Rockstar has emphasised.
Vehicle combat in GTA VI represents the convergence of three franchise pillars: the cinematic chase, the cooperative criminal duo and the open-world sandbox. With drive-by shooting enhanced by the Jason–Lucia partnership, an expanded arsenal of weaponised land, sea and air vehicles, and a smarter, body-camera-equipped law enforcement layer, the system promises to be the most reactive in series history. While Rockstar has yet to confirm specific mechanics ahead of the November 2026 launch, the available trailers, screenshots and reporting indicate vehicle combat will remain the beating heart of the GTA experience (Rockstar Games, 2026; Wikipedia, 2026; GTA Wiki, 2026).
GTA Wiki (2026) Grand Theft Auto VI. Available at: https://gta.fandom.com/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto_VI (Accessed: 14 May 2026).
Rockstar Games (2026) Grand Theft Auto VI – Official Site. Available at: https://www.rockstargames.com/VI (Accessed: 14 May 2026).
Wikipedia (2026) Grand Theft Auto VI. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto_VI (Accessed: 14 May 2026).