A small YouTube channel called vepko, with 51 subscribers and a focus on Grand Theft Auto V mods, posted a video titled "Grand Theft Auto VI Walkthrough Gameplay Part 1," racking up two views before Take-Two Interactive hit it with a copyright claim, and that was that. Or, at least, that should've been the end. Then the information-starved internet started speculating, with some seeing the rapid takedown as proof that the footage was real.
After all, why would Take-Two block the alleged Grand Theft Auto 6 footage so quickly if it were fake? If it was real, was it new? Or was it recycled 2022 leak footage, reuploaded for clout? Or perhaps it was mod content dressed up as new GTA 6 gameplay to farm views, perhaps made with the help of AI.
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Although we can't say for certain it was 100% fake, the takedown doesn't necessarily prove it was real.
You see, Take-Two has a history of aggressively and automatically blocking GTA 6 content, regardless of whether it is real, fake, recycled, or a mod. The company runs content-matching systems and legal teams that issue claims on anything tagged as GTA 6 gameplay. The removal tells you the company is protecting its brand. It tells you nothing about whether the footage was genuine.
Now, could it have been real? It's possible. There's genuine GTA 6 footage floating around after a teenage hacker breached Rockstar's systems and leaked roughly 90 videos of early GTA 6 footage back in 2022. That footage is real, it is years old, and it is also freely available across the internet. Anyone can download it, slap a "Part 1 Walkthrough" title on it, add some fake UI overlays, and upload it as "new" gameplay. The footage looks legitimate because it is legitimate, just three and a half years old, and already public.
The pattern is identical to every other unverified leak this year. The Best Buy pre-order leak, the security claims at Rockstar North, and the fake 2027 delay. Each started with an unverified claim, went viral, generated discussion, and was later debunked. The information vacuum is so intense that any content claiming to show new footage gets attention regardless of credibility.
The simple test for any GTA 6 "gameplay" leak is to ask yourself if it's from Rockstar Games. So far, the only official GTA 6 footage that exists is Trailer 1 and Trailer 2. Neither contained raw gameplay. Until Rockstar shows gameplay, which is expected when the marketing campaign starts this summer, any "gameplay walkthrough" is either the 2022 leak, a mod, or a fabrication. There is no fourth option.
The real GTA 6 gameplay is coming. It will arrive on Rockstar's official channels, in a polished trailer, with the full force of the marketing machine behind it. It will not arrive on a 51-subscriber channel at 2 views with a generic walkthrough title.
When the real thing drops, you will not have to ask whether it is authentic. The entire internet will tell you at once.
