There's under two weeks to go until the release of Grand Theft Auto VI for PS5 and Xbox, and the hype is approaching fever pitch. It was already the most-anticipated video game of all time. Now developer and publisher Rockstar Games is rolling out heavy digital and billboard advertising to cement the title's status as a global cultural event.
From Buenos Aires to Vienna, GTA VI ads have been appearing on the sides of buildings, at bus stops and in stadiums. At least one's already come in for a spot of artistic intervention after someone took advantage of game's visibility to make their own brand a household name, and it's sparked quite a debate.
The GTA 6 marketing has kicked off in more cities around the world: - Hamburg/Frankfurt/Leipzig, Germany 🇩🇪 - Buenos Aires, Argentina 🇦🇷 - London, UK 🇬🇧 - Paris, France 🇫🇷 - Singapore 🇸🇬 - Prague, Czech Republic 🇨🇿 - Taipei, Taiwan 🇹🇼 - Lisbon, Portugal 🇵🇹 - Santiago, Chile 🇨🇱 - Dubai, UAE 🇦🇪 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 🇧🇷 - Madrid, Spain 🇪🇸 The video also includes more footage from Cologne, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Warsaw, São Paulo, New York, New Mexico, Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Hong Kong, Stockholm, Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, and Toronto. Enjoy!November 6, 2026
Sign painters Nick Birnie and Ian Potter spent over a week hand painting a huge GTA VI mural for Rockstar in Brooklyn, New York City. The artwork became an attraction, drawing fans who travelled to capture work in progress on the piece.
Within a month, the artwork had been tagged by a graffiti artist going by the name of Jelous, and the intervention has sparked quite a debate.
Many people have expressed outrage at the desecration of the colossal tribute to Jason and Lucia from the upcoming game, with some saying the piece has been "ruined" by the graffiti artist.
"Hopefully they come and remove this crappy graffiti and fix the mural…. Also look on security cameras to find out where this guy lives and arrest him," one person writes on Instagram.
“As an Italian graffiti artist myself, I honestly think this is pretty disrespectful, even by graffiti standards,” someone writes over on Reddit.
Mural Update - Talked to the Artists (Instagram accounts in body)from r/GTA6
But some think fans are being overly precious about what is, after all, a huge advert installed by a subsidiary of a $39.06 billion corporation that's using public space to push an $80-$100 game, even if the artwork was hand painted.
Others point out that crime is a central feature of the GTA franchise. Players can commit everything from minor traffic offences to first degree murder. Some think that makes the tag a fitting response.
"There's nothing more GTA than tagging a giant GTA mural," one person reckons. Some even suggest that Rockstar should add it to the game.
GTA 6 will be released on 19 November.
