ConfirmedPublished Sep 10, 2026By Mike Pagani5 min read

Rockstar Explains GTA 6's Two Protagonists, Gyms and New Wanted System in Famitsu Interview

Jason and Lucia in Vice City in GTA 6, official screenshot

In an interview with the Japanese magazine Famitsu, Rob Nelson, head of development and co-studio head at Rockstar North, gave one of the most detailed explanations yet of how Grand Theft Auto VI plays. He covered how Jason and Lucia's relationship works, the return of gyms and a police system rebuilt from scratch. Here are the highlights, organized by topic.

Jason and Lucia: characters and relationship

Rockstar first considered four playable characters, but settled on two. According to Nelson, the team learned with Arthur Morgan in Red Dead Redemption 2 that fewer protagonists means more screen time for each one and a stronger emotional bond with the player.

Partners in crime or a couple: Players choose how to treat the relationship. Skipping the romance closes off some interactions, such as holding hands or kissing, but the main story can be completed either way.
Switching characters: You can switch freely between Jason and Lucia in the open world, except at specific story moments. At the very start of the game, control is locked to Jason.
Hideouts that change: As with the camp in RDR2, the story is told in chapters, and the couple's hideout changes as it progresses.

Gyms are back

Body stats: The game tracks each character's health, stamina and fitness. Depending on your habits, they can gain muscle or body fat.
Workouts: Gym minigames return, as in GTA San Andreas. Leveling up takes consistency: Rockstar described a routine of three exercises a day for three days in a row.
Food: Eating gives temporary boosts to health and stamina on top of the base values you raise by training.

A smarter wanted system

Witnesses: As in RDR2, a crime only reaches the police if someone sees it and reports it.
Cash vs. bank: Money now works like GTA Online. Cash you carry is lost if you die or get arrested; money deposited in the bank is safe.
Criminal profile: The game evaluates how you act. Commit many offenses in a row and you can be pushed into a chaotic state in which you're no longer treated as an ordinary citizen.
No more invisible rifles: Long guns are now visible on your character and must be stored at Ammu-Nation or in a car trunk to stay discreet.

Taken together, the interview shows a GTA built around consequences: what you eat, where you keep your money and who sees you all matter. For the full breakdown of the police system, read our guide: the GTA 6 wanted system.

GTA VI launches November 19, 2026 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Stay tuned to our website for more updates and full coverage as soon as new information about GTA 6 emerges!

Context

Rob Nelson's Famitsu interview, translated into English by GTAVice on September 9, was one of several conversations he gave after Rockstar's August 27 Extended Look on Netflix. He had already spoken at length to IGN, which later published the full transcript, and to Dazed. Read together, the interviews describe a GTA that borrows heavily from Red Dead Redemption 2: safehouses compared to Arthur Morgan's camps, a relationship system between Jason and Lucia, and police who only react to what witnesses actually see.

The Famitsu conversation went further on some systems, such as the gym routine, cash lost on death or arrest, and long guns that can no longer be carried invisibly.

What we know

Rockstar considered four protagonists before settling on two, to give players more time with each character, Nelson told IGN.
The romance between Jason and Lucia is optional, and the story keeps them working together as partners for most of the game either way.
Crimes are reported only when a witness sees them or an alarm goes off, and changing outfits helps shake off the police.
Diet and exercise change the characters' body shape, and gyms let players build strength.
A Criminal Profile tracks behavior that goes beyond what missions require; it is separate from the relationship system and different from RDR2's honor system.

What we don't know yet

The gym routine described in the Famitsu translation, three exercises a day over three days, has not been shown in footage.
How much the relationship changes the story: Nelson said it will “have a bearing” on how it plays out, without giving specifics.
How banking and cash loss are balanced in single player is known only from Famitsu's description, not from gameplay.

VICEVERSA's take

The common thread across Nelson's interviews is friction. Cars that need tools to steal, cash you can lose, rifles you have to stash, outfits the police remember: each system asks you to plan instead of improvise. That is a deliberate step away from GTA V, where the world mostly reacted to the player, and toward Red Dead Redemption 2, where it pushed back. RDR2 showed this approach can deepen immersion. It also showed it can slow a game down.

Some caution with the details is still warranted. The Famitsu text reached English through a fan translation, and a few points have been stretched in retellings, our own summary included: the lock on Jason applies to one early mission, not the whole opening. The elements Nelson repeated to several outlets, the optional romance, witness-based policing and the criminal profile, are the ones to treat as settled. Everything else will be tested on November 19.

Mike Pagani, editor

Sources