From being a dirty secret to the whole city celebrating, what a time to be a GTA fan

I was thinking about this the other day. When I was a kid playing GTA 2 on PC, I remember wishing it could be fully 3D. Then GTA 3 happened and it was like a miracle. But back then, the media and politicians were losing their minds over the violence. It felt like you had to hide that you played it, like it was some guilty pleasure. Teachers, parents, news anchors, everyone acted like the game was going to corrupt us all.

Now it's 2026 and the same media outlets are falling over themselves to talk about GTA 6. Politicians in Miami are getting involved, sports teams are referencing it, the whole city is basically rolling out the red carpet. I never thought I'd see the day where local officials are hyping up a Grand Theft Auto game instead of trying to ban it. It's surreal.

Kid me would never have believed this turnaround. The hype around Leonida is on another level. It's not just gamers anymore, it's everyone. I keep seeing news segments where they're talking about Vice City like it's a real place that's about to open for tourism. Wild.

What do you all think changed? Is it just that the people who grew up with GTA are now the ones running things, or did Rockstar just get too big to ignore?

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Source: r/GTA6 · Curated content.