Rockstar’s GTA 6 marketing has moved onto the streets of Miami. On October 15, real cars modified to look like GTA 6 vehicles, with Leonida license plates and a Lamborghini in in-game police colors, were filmed driving through the city. The same day, the window opened for Vice City branding on Miami Beach chairs and downtown building banners. Miami-Dade County officials remain split on whether the county should join the GTA 6 Miami push and take Rockstar’s money at all.
Grand Theft Auto VI launches on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. Its main city, Vice City, is Rockstar’s take on Miami, so the campaign is aimed squarely at the real thing.
GTA 6's in-game cars are now being recreated on real Miami streets. Pictured: Wyman's Classic Car Collection, an Ultimate Edition extra. Image: Rockstar Games
Table of Contents
GTA 6 in Miami: what showed up this week
According to IGN, the cars drove in a tight convoy. Among them were real-life versions of in-game models such as the Cheetah, Coquette D10, Tempesta and Manana, plus a McLaren dressed as a Progen Emerus. Local account Only in Dade posted the cars parked at a gas station on the evening of October 15, with a Goodyear blimp carrying a GTA 6 ad nearby. Push Square also points to Instagram clips of Vice City signs going up and planes towing promotional banners.
Rockstar hasn’t commented on the cars. Most of the branding uses “VI”, “Vice City” and the game’s colors rather than the Grand Theft Auto logo.
Every GTA 6 Vice City deal in Miami so far
| Activation | Approved by | Money | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Welcome to Vice City” sign on the Kaseya Center roof | Miami-Dade mayor’s office, no commission vote | $975,000 | Up since September |
| Vice City branding on Miami Beach chairs and umbrellas | Miami Beach Commission, 4-3 vote on September 10 | About $3 million (reported) | October 15 to December 31 |
| Banners on downtown Miami buildings | City of Miami Commission, unanimous | Per-banner fees for an Overtown greenway | October 15 to December 31 |
| Miami Heat “A Night in Vice City” | Miami Heat (private deal) | Not disclosed | November 18 vs. Milwaukee Bucks |
| Airport, PortMiami and transit installations | Miami-Dade County Commission | Multimillion-dollar deal proposed | Stalled, vote delayed |
The Kaseya Center deal stayed $25,000 under the $1 million mark that would have required a commission vote, Political Cortadito reports. For the Heat game, the team will play on a “Vice City Court” in redesigned uniforms, VGC reported when it was announced on October 2.
Vice Beach in GTA 6. Real Miami Beach chairs and umbrellas now carry discreet Vice City branding through December 31. Image: Rockstar Games
What Miami officials are saying about GTA 6
The county proposal would let Rockstar pay for Vice City installations at Miami International Airport, PortMiami and on Metromover or Metrorail cars. It ran into trouble at the October 6 commission meeting. “We’re depicting Miami like a murder capital,” Commissioner René Garcia said, according to the Miami Herald. Commissioner Micky Steinberg added: “Philosophically, I feel we should not be moving forward.”
Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s chief of staff, Chris Hudtwalcker, called the game “a love letter to Miami.” Commissioner J.C. Bermudez replied that he “would call it a lust letter.” Chair Anthony Rodriguez, who sponsored the measure, defended it: “This is a fictional game. We are all adults in this community.” With the measure short of votes, Commissioner Oliver Gilbert used a procedural motion to end the debate and push the vote to a later meeting. Commissioners then voted that any Rockstar deal over $1 million must come back to the board.
Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz has opposed the idea since September. In a joint statement with Bermudez, reported by WLRN, she called GTA “a video game franchise built around criminal activity.” She urged county leaders to consider “the message we send when our own government promotes a fictional identity centered around many of those same crimes.”
Why it matters for GTA 6
The fight is only over public money and county property. The city deals, the beach branding, the Kaseya Center sign and the Heat night are going ahead regardless. For players, it’s another sign of how big this launch is: a month out, Rockstar’s marketing has become a local political issue in the city the game is based on. Fans have been reading Miami clues into Rockstar’s moves for years: back in 2021, we covered a Rockstar soundtrack supervisor’s Miami Beach Instagram story that fueled Vice City rumors.
What’s next
Miami-Dade commissioners are expected to take up the delayed item again. GTA Boom reports that vote is set for October 20. The Heat’s Vice City night follows on November 18, the day before launch. For everything Rockstar has shown so far, see our breakdown of the GTA 6 launch trailer. If you’re still choosing an edition, our GTA 6 pre-order and editions guide covers prices and bonuses. We’ll add updates to our live gaming news page as they come in.
Sources: Miami Herald, WLRN, Political Cortadito, IGN, Push Square, GameSpot, DualShockers, VGC, GTA Boom, Rockstar Games.
Live: Follow today’s gaming news as it happens
Featured image: Rockstar Games
