How GTA 6 Has Changed Since Trailer 2

It seems like forever ago that we got our first look at “Grand Theft Auto 6” from that very rough massive leak of footage in 2022. Part of that likely has to do with the excruciating 16-month wait between the first and second official trailers in 2023 and 2025 respectively, though the differences between those two trailers proved that Rockstar was still very much in full development on the game and was continuing to improve everything. But even as impressive as the second trailer looked, there are multiple noticeable improvements between that and the big extended look that was released first to Netflix, and later to YouTube, on August 27, 2026.

Some of the upgrades, changes, tweaks, and other differences were immediate from the moment you watched the extended look. Others were a bit more subtle, and required a few more passes — and perhaps even direct comparisons back to the second trailer to notice. But either way, we felt that these five things represent some of the most significant changes between the second trailer and the extended look, showcasing Rockstar’s commitment to continue working to make this game as mind-blowing as possible even with the launch just a few months away. And don’t be surprised if even these things come to be changed — if not topped — by the time the final product is released and sees its inevitable first couple of patches.

Indoor crowd scenes have gotten denser and more impressive

Though some people see “GTA 6” being apparently locked at 30fps as limiting its performance, it is clear that the trade-off is a level of visual fidelity the likes of which we’ve never seen in a video game. One of the areas where that is most apparent are the scenes that showcase large crowds of people. There were already some awe-inspiring indoor and outdoor crowd shots in the second trailer, but the extended look took things to a whole other level.

Case in point: the nightclub shots from both trailers. Trailer 2 showed an already great-looking club scene with a decent-sized crowd of varying NPC types all moving in unique and realistic ways. But the extended look absolutely blew that away when we saw Jason slowly moving through a packed dance floor, absolutely dense with clubgoers who each had a completely unique look and set of animations. 

You’d be hard-pressed to think of another game that has even attempted an indoor crowd scene of that scope, but of the ones that have, none have seen each person fully dancing and moving around without a single one just standing there or taking up space to pad out the effect. Even the most powerful gaming PC on the market right now couldn’t render that scene at 60fps, and we’d be surprised if one could even in the next few years.

Lucia’s hair continues to evolve

Lucia’s looks have been getting tons of attention during the build-up of hype around “GTA 6” for pretty obvious reasons, some of which we don’t need to say out loud. But honestly, her most impressive asset so far might actually be her hair, especially from a tech standpoint. It already looked cutting-edge even in the first trailer, but at times — like when she’s hanging out of a car’s sunroof speeding down the highway — it was a bit underwhelming. 

The second trailer was a lot better, showcasing some really incredible hair physics that saw multiple chunks of hair moving independently as she walked, ran, danced, and even just talked. But as with the first trailer, we still got a few scenes where it sort of still looked like one big mass. Fast forward to the extended look, and Lucia’s hair is now a thing of true digital beauty. You can literally make out individual strands of hair in almost every shot, holding its own against the most advanced hair you’ve seen in big-budget computer-animated movies. And this is in real time! 

Even in scenes where she is just sitting and talking, the slightest motion of her head has her hair swinging around, resting on her shoulder and then cascading off, all like a real head of hair. We also see how much its constitution changes when it gets wet, but we’ll delve into that a bit later.

Animals aren’t just for ambience anymore

The second “GTA 6” trailer opens with an overheard shot, punctuated by a flock of birds flying through the frame. Later, as a television shows a commercial for Ammu-Nation, a couple of seagulls walk along on the deck just outside a nearby window. And that’s about the extent of what we see of the animal kingdom in the game. Nobody would have thought twice about it — this isn’t the “Red Dead” series, after all — until Rockstar showed just how much characters were going to interact with animals in “GTA 6” via the extended look.

Early in the footage, we see Jason approach a dog. Proving that, in fact, “GTA” has been inspired by “Red Dead,” Jason is given several options as to how he should interact with the animal. He chooses to pet it, and the dog gets on its hind legs and the two share an affectionate moment. It’s unlikely such a system was implemented just for this one specific moment, so clearly you’ll be able to have a lot of intricate interactions with animals throughout the game.

Later, as the extended look is showing off how much work was put into the gorgeous underwater areas of “GTA 6,” we see fish, eels, stingrays, and various other aquatic creatures that the player can scuba dive next to. It’s obvious that animals aren’t only going to exist in the background or to avoid being run over by your car, as was largely their role in the “GTA” series up to this point.

Sweatiness has gone from slightly shiny to dripping wet

Almost every movie or TV show that takes place in Miami visually represents how hot and humid it is there by having characters be visibly sweaty. Except for fighting games and sports games, visible perspiration hasn’t really been a major priority for video games. Well, in following along with the “GTA 6” approach of not overlooking any details, characters will indeed be getting sweaty. 

The opening moments of the second trailer show us a shirtless and slightly glistening Jason, while you can likewise catch a bit of a sheen on Lucia and other characters as well at various other points. But once we saw an extremely sweaty Lucia dancing the night away in the extended look, we know that sweat physics were going to be taken to a whole other level. Far from just a bit of shininess, you can clearly see the wetness of Lucia’s skin, reflecting light, running down her neck — the whole nine yards. It’s an effect that a lot of time and effort was put into, and it’s a level of sweat that is usually reserved for pre-rendered cutscenes.

It doesn’t stop at her skin, either. Lucia’s hair is likewise appropriately moist, looking like it’s dripping down her back and all over her face. We’ve seen plenty of wet hair in games before, but this is more than that — it doesn’t just look regular wet, it looks sweaty wet, and it’s impressive that you can tell the difference.

Jason’s more exhausted look heralds the return of a fan-favorite San Andreas feature

With each passing trailer, subtle details on the faces of characters in “GTA 6” have grown more complex. However, while Lucia, Brian Heder, and other major characters haven’t changed dramatically, Jason seems to almost look like a different person in some shots of the extended look, versus how he looked in the second trailer. Some online chatter described him as looking less tough, with softer features, kinder-looking eyes, and an almost sympathetic visage. 

But there is likely a reason for this that goes beyond the usual tweaking of characters and their features that happens over the course of a game’s development. Odds are that it is Rockstar’s way of hinting at the recently announced return of the dynamic character changing from “GTA: San Andreas,” wherein CJ got heavy if he ate too much and buff if he worked out a lot.

Rockstar said that the system was not only going to be far more complex in “GTA 6,” but that it would also affect even Jason and Lucia’s faces. For example, if you play it classic “GTA” style and force them to stay up for days on end without rest, they’ll begin to look tired. With that in mind, watch the extended look again — some of those moments where Jason seems to look “softer,” suddenly read as more exhausted and needing some rest. Rockstar certainly loves these subtle little details, which they hope fans parse out without explicitly needing it spelled out for them.