When it comes to previous Grand Theft Auto entries, their loading screens have become as recognizable as its gameplay. We have all seen the meme of parents walking in to see the scantily-clad woman in a bikini on our screens when loading up Grand Theft Auto V, and we all remember the Lindsay Lohan lawsuit after believing that the aforementioned woman was based off of her.
As such, the loading screens of Grand Theft Auto have been a necessary evil over the years. However, with technology advancing at such a rapid rate since the last entry, Grand Theft Auto V, was released back in 2013, loading screens may just be a thing of the past when Grand Theft Auto VI launches this November.
After all, it has been well over a decade since the last GTA installment was released, and we have seen many recent AAA releases almost eradicating loading screens entirely, or at least incorporating them into gameplay somehow. Put simply, we are not going to have to stare at art, as lovely as it may be, for minutes at a time whilst loading into the game or switching between characters.
Switching between characters was introduced in Grand Theft Auto V, with players able to switch between Michael, Trevor, and Franklin at will. However, with the characters usually spread across all corners of the map, it would take a while for the game to “load” them in. In Grand Theft Auto VI, player switching will also return, this time with Jason and Lucia, the Bonnie and Clyde-esque duo, who will become our brand-new protagonists. At the time of writing, we know next to nothing about how their story will unfold, but we can imagine that players will need to switch between them during certain moments or at will during free play.
This comes after leaked footage was released back in 2023 which showed Jason and Lucia hanging out together at a motel. The footage has since been removed by Rockstar, but not before fans got to see the effortless switching between the pair. Consisting of no loading time whatsoever, this could be because the two characters were just meters away from each other, or this could just be the basis for loading times no matter where they are on the map. That remains to be seen.
Nevertheless, fans were understandably excited over this potential upgrade, and took to the comments over on r/GTA6 to share their thoughts. “It was neat to see the switch working at close range, but I’d love to see how it differs from GTA V‘s with far range switching,” one user shared, echoing my own thoughts. Another user made an interesting suggestion, adding, “I think it would be good if you could play the story in its entirety with Jason and then again with Lucia and have two different experiences. Obviously, a lot of missions will cross, but we will be able to change the narrative based on decisions made etc.”
It is also worth mentioning that loading times could be subject to the capabilities of the platform you decide to play Grand Theft Auto VI on, but there is no denying that we will see major improvements from what we had to deal with back in 2013.
- Released
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November 19, 2026
- ESRB
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Rating Pending – Likely Mature 17+
- Engine
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Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE)
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer