'Grand Theft Auto 6' rumors: Release date and further map details could arrive in this year's E3

"Grand Theft Auto 5" became a huge hit due to its expansive world, and "Grand Theft Auto 6" is bound to be even bigger.Facebook/Grand Theft Auto V

"Grand Theft Auto 6," Rockstar's triple-A game, is rumored to be announced "soon," either in the E3 game convention this year or next. With its last installment launching almost five years ago, "GTA 6" could be nearing its first public announcement. The rumors have increased due to the amount of time that Rockstar has taken to create the game.

Rockstar is a game developer known to take its time. Back in years prior, the "GTA" franchise" would usually release games with only a few years apart. However, ever since the four-year time skip between "GTA San Andreas" (2004) and "GTA 4" (2008), Rockstar has changed its time frame in developing "GTA" games.

Its latest game, which was "Grand Theft Auto 5," was released in 2013, five years after "GTA 4." Moreover, the game was announced in 2011, two years before its actual launch in retail stores. The success of "GTA 5" as probably the best game of the "GTA" series, along with the five-year gap between 2013 and 2018 has caused rumors for a "GTA 6" to stir.

"GTA 5" was originally designed and developed for third generation consoles like the PlayStation 3 and XBox 360. The game received resounding praise from fans and game critics alike for its massive sandbox mechanic along with its in-depth storytelling. This prompted the company to create a "remastered" version for fourth generation consoles.

With the recent success of "Grand Theft Auto 5" in fourth generation consoles such as the PlayStation 4 (PS4) and XBox One, fans of Rockstar's game cannot wait for an actual "GTA 6" that is specifically tailored for the newest consoles of Sony and Microsoft.

One of the hints that Rockstar dropped years ago is that it could potentially create the biggest "GTA" game at one point, incorporating all of the game's previous maps. While many thought this would be "GTA 5" back then, it seems more likely to arrive in a much more powerful PS4 through a sixth installment of the franchise.

"Of course at some point we would like to have one big world containing all our cities and let the player fly between them and revisit their favourite areas," said Rockstar President Leslie Benzies in a 2012 interview with Digital Trends.

While not much is known at this point, Rockstar has clearly announced that it is already developing the game. With the five-year time frame, a public announcement could be slated either this year's E3 or next.