GTA 6 is Rockstar’s biggest game by every measure the studio has shared: an 80 hour story for its own lead, a map about three times the size of Red Dead Redemption 2’s, and more than ten times GTA 5’s NPC animations. It also costs more than any of the others. Modern Warfare 4, out since October 23, is the shorter, cheaper blockbuster that most players will have in their hands before GTA 6 arrives on November 19. Here is how the four compare, with every figure sourced.
The four games at a glance
| GTA 6 | GTA 5 | Red Dead Redemption 2 | Modern Warfare 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release | November 19, 2026 | September 17, 2013 | October 26, 2018 | October 23, 2026 |
| Made by | Rockstar Games | Rockstar Games | Rockstar Games | Infinity Ward (Activision) |
| Launch platforms | PS5, Xbox Series X|S | PS3, Xbox 360 | PS4, Xbox One | PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Switch 2 |
| PC at launch | No, not announced | No, came later | No, came later | Yes |
| Launch price | $79.99, Ultimate $99.99 | $60 | $60 | $69.99 |
| Setting | Leonida and Vice City, today | Los Santos and Blaine County | America at the dawn of the modern age | Hajin, South Korea, plus Price’s missions abroad |
| Playable leads | Two: Jason and Lucia | Three: Michael, Franklin, Trevor | One: Arthur Morgan | Private Park and Captain Price |
| Online at launch | None announced | GTA Online two weeks later | Not covered here | Multiplayer and DMZ from day one |
Release dates come from Rockstar’s trailers and the reviews. Launch prices for GTA 5 and Red Dead 2 come from GameSpot’s coverage; Modern Warfare 4’s from the Xbox Store.
Story and length
| Story length | Where the figure comes from | |
|---|---|---|
| GTA 6 | 80 hours, including some optional goals | Rob Nelson of Rockstar North, to The New York Times (via TechRadar) |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | Up to 60 hours | TechRadar |
| GTA 5 | Around 30 hours | TechRadar |
| Modern Warfare 4 | About 6 hours | A review quoted by Kotaku |
Nelson’s 80 hours was one developer’s run, not an average. TechRadar expects players who explore and do side activities to go well past it.
Modern Warfare 4 is a different kind of game. Its campaign opens in Seoul with a North Korean invasion, then cuts to Captain Price on the run in New York and Paris, according to TechRadar and GamesRadar. Most of its hours come from multiplayer for up to 60 players and the DMZ extraction mode, not the story.
The world
| GTA 6 | GTA 5 | Red Dead Redemption 2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Map size | About 2x GTA 5, about 3x Red Dead 2 | About half of GTA 6 | About a third of GTA 6 |
| Main city | Vice City, about twice the size of Los Santos | Los Santos | Not covered here |
| NPC animations | Well over 600,000 | 55,000 | 300,000 |
| How people react | Made by hand, they notice and remember | A basic system, Rockstar says | A fuller system: greet people, or get in their way |
Map figures come from Rockstar’s Rob Nelson, speaking to YouTuber TGG at Rockstar North (reported by Kotaku and VGC). Animation counts come from The New York Times, via GamesRadar.
Red Dead 2 is where GTA 6’s people started. Nelson told IGN, as reported by GamesRadar, that Rockstar “pushed interaction with NPCs as far as we could” in Red Dead 2, and that GTA 6 is “taking it much further”. The idea was to see how a system built for a sparse frontier would feel at scale in a modern city.
Choices go further too. GamesRadar notes that GTA 5’s one big decision came in its final mission, and that Red Dead 2’s honour system shifted cutscenes and the ending while the story kept its shape. Developers told Dazed that choices in GTA 6 ripple well beyond that.
GTA 5’s Los Santos. © Rockstar Games
Tech and download size
| GTA 6 | GTA 5 | Red Dead Redemption 2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Console frame rate | 30fps at launch (Rockstar, via TechRadar) | Depends on version | Depends on version |
| Download size | 210GB reported, not confirmed | 105GB on PC | 150GB on PC |
The GTA 6 size comes from a PlayStation Store tracker that GamesRadar reported on October 27. GamesRadar adds that GTA 5 and Red Dead 2 are closer to 100 to 110GB on PS5. Our preload guide will carry the official size once Rockstar or the stores confirm it.
Sales so far
| Copies | Source | |
|---|---|---|
| GTA 5 | Over 230 million sold in | Take-Two filing, August 2026 |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | Over 85 million sold in | Take-Two filing, August 2026 |
| GTA 5 on day one | 11 million | DFC Intelligence, via GamesRadar |
| GTA 6 | Not out yet; analysts expect 25 to 51 million early on | See our expectations roundup |
What critics said
GTA 6 reviews have not been published yet (when to expect them). Modern Warfare 4’s are in:
| Outlet | Modern Warfare 4 score | In short |
|---|---|---|
| TechRadar | 5/5 | The best the series has to offer |
| GamesRadar+ | 4.5/5 | Spectacular campaign; DMZ is a favourite |
| PC Gamer | 85/100 | Strong guns and levels, a rushed story |
The videos below include GameSpot’s reviews of Red Dead 2 and Modern Warfare 4, IGN’s Modern Warfare 4 review, and the official trailers. For GTA 5, see our GTA 6 vs GTA 5 guide.
Which one should you play?
- Want the biggest open world? GTA 6, from November 19. Pre-ordering before November 20 adds the Vintage Vice City Pack.
- Want a slower, story-led Rockstar game now? Red Dead Redemption 2 is the closest thing to GTA 6’s NPC systems.
- Want to warm up in Rockstar’s last crime game? GTA 5 and GTA Online (where to play).
- Want fast multiplayer and a short campaign? Modern Warfare 4, out now and cheaper.
Related pages
- GTA 6 vs GTA 5: every confirmed difference
- GTA 6 map size
- Every confirmed GTA 6 feature
- GTA 6 editions and price
