Grand Theft Auto 6 developer Rockstar Games is no stranger to controversy when it comes to the open-world crime game series, and it seems police officials within Miami-Dade County (which the setting of Vice City is a fictionalized version of) do not want the game overly associated with the city. To be clear, no official within Miami has said anything specifically derogatory about GTA 6, but that a specific, reported, yet unknown deal is not worth the association.
The Miamian recently reported that Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s staff floated marketing possibilities for the city for the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto 6—a clear attempt to increase tourism and attract fans of GTA 6 to the real-world “Vice City,” likely piggybacking off the massive success of the recent Netflix Extended Look. No known deal is remotely in the works, and there are conflicting reports about who approached who, what it would include, and how far such a deal would go. That said, Grand Theft Auto 6 is a game about crime, and so the police are opposed to this “marketing deal.”
Miami-Dade Sheriff on GTA 6
As reported by The Miami Herald, Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Statuz has openly commented on this “marketing deal” on behalf of the county, suggesting that the crime-ridden association of Vice City in GTA 6 is not reflective of the real-world city of Miami. Using the city to market a crime game would go against everything Miami police have done in past years to improve crime and violence, according to the Sheriff, who argues further that the game depicts criminal activities that her department openly works to stop.
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The proposed campaign could have reportedly seen Miami-Dade turn parts of the county into real-world tributes to GTA 6‘s Vice City, including “Welcome to Vice City” messaging at Miami International Airport, Vice City branding on county manholes, and wrapped Metromover cars. Cordero-Stuz, alongside commissioner Juan Carlos Bermudez, released a joint statement in reaction to this possibility, saying,
“Grand Theft Auto is a video game franchise built around criminal activity. Its fictional world includes murder, robbery, drug trafficking, carjacking, violence against law enforcement, and other conduct that the men and women of the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office work every single day to prevent…Miami-Dade County has spent decades building a reputation as a world-class destination for tourism, business, investment, and opportunity. We should be promoting the Miami-Dade we have worked so hard to build, not a fictional version of our community defined by crime and violence.”
Cordero-Stutz is not the only Miami-Dade official raising concerns. Bermudez joined her in arguing that the county should promote its real-world reputation instead of a fictional city associated with crime and violence, while Miami-Dade’s chief judge and clerk have also asked that courthouses be excluded from any potential campaign. The judicial officials, however, acknowledged that a deal with Rockstar could provide significant economic benefits to the county.
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And while Miami-Dade is clearly concerned about Miami-Dade, it’s worth noting that gamers have been looking forward to marketing for GTA 6 since Summer started. No doubt images of these promotions would end up online, so it could potentially benefit both. That said, as more and more news about GTA 6 features, gameplay, and so forth appears online, it’s only going to be more associated with crime—not less.
- Released
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November 19, 2026
- ESRB
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Rating Pending – Likely Mature 17+
