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Rockstar Games is known for bringing biting and often puerile satire to its Grand Theft Auto games. The 13-year span between Grand Theft Auto 5<\/em> and Grand Theft Auto 6<\/em> means there’s plenty of American culture to interrogate or poke fun at, but a few things will be off the table, according to new previews of Rockstar’s upcoming game. Two things that GTA 6<\/em> won’t directly address, according to a new report: Donald Trump\u2019s rise to political power and the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Many GTA players will be happy to hear that, as the games often serve as a fantastical escape that reflects a distorted version of reality. But Rockstar has other reasons for steering clear of real-world historical events.<\/p>\n “We run the risk of dating ourselves in a sort of awkward way,” Rockstar North studio head Rob Nelson told The New York Times. “So we have to look at things and go, What is going to have a timeless sort of quality that will speak very easily to relatable sort of human folly and foibles and will be remembered as part of this time<\/em>?”<\/p>\n It sounds like Rockstar may still make some oblique references to the rise of mainstreaming conspiracy theories in our current culture, an adjacent acknowledgment of Trump and coronavirus.<\/p>\n Nelson addressed the approach to satire in a separate preview on IGN: “Because we work on such a long development cycle, we have to not jump on stuff and instead choose our angle of approach carefully and decide what things are going to be a bit more timeless. We\u2019re not a TV show coming out every week or every month. We have to be careful that what we\u2019re choosing to satirize is not going to feel dated in a weird way. I think those broader things are OK to satirize, but very specific political issues or memes will date fast.”<\/p>\n Previous Grand Theft Auto 6<\/em> trailers have leaned into popular memes, though, including what appeared to be a reference to the “Florida Joker” and a few viral TikTok clips.<\/p>\n But Nelson emphasized an attempt to keep GTA feeling “timeless,” even avoiding contemporary slang to ensure that Rockstar’s next game doesn’t feel dated.<\/p>\n Grand Theft Auto 6<\/em> will be released on Nov. 19 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.<\/p>\n