GTA 6 Collector's Map Rumor Remains Unconfirmed After Five Store Calls

A rumor is making the rounds that the physical copy of Grand Theft Auto VI will come with a collector's map tucked inside the box. Is it true? Possibly. We also wouldn't rule out the situation being a handwritten store sign that got misinterpreted out of hand.

It started with an image of a GameStop sign advertising a "collector's map" with the physical GTA 6 edition on Reddit. From there it spread. The YouTuber Alex, who posts as iShoTz, said he called his local GameStop and was told the box includes a map alongside the download code. Another user, Keemotionx, reported the same answer from his store.

Then the cracks showed. Cade Onder, a writer for IGN and ComicBook, called five GameStop stores and found "total confusion," with staff who knew nothing about a map. He reached out to corporate for an official answer. Rockstar Games has not said a word and neither has GameStop's corporate office. So the whole thing rests on one store sign and a couple of employees who may have read that same sign.

For what it's worth, the idea has legs because of what the physical edition is not. Rockstar already confirmed the $79.99 Standard Edition ships as a code in a box, with no disc inside, which set off months of backlash and canceled GameStop pre-orders. Older Rockstar games spoiled players by comparison.

For example, Grand Theft Auto V shipped with a disc, a SteelBook and a fold-out map in its special edition. Red Dead Redemption 2 came with a paper map, too. A collector's map is a small olive branch to the fans who may have felt shortchanged.

GTA 6 maps, real and rumored

• Map | What it is | Status
• Map: Collector's map in the physical edition | What it is: A paper map rumored to ship in the code-in-box | Status: Unconfirmed, from a store sign and mixed employee answers
• Map: Leonida poster in the Vice City Collection | What it is: A double-sided poster in the $399.99 merch box | Status: Real, but the box has no game
• Map: Our landmarks map and fan maps | What it is: Digital maps built from trailers and leaks | Status: Live now, free
• Map: The in-game map | What it is: Leonida and Vice City inside the game | Status: Comes with every copy on November 19

Only one of these maps is still a rumor, the rest you can already see or buy.

For now, only one official GTA 6 map comes on paper and it is not in the game box. The $399.99 Vice City Collection includes a double-sided poster with a Leonida map on one side. The only caveat is that the Vice City Collection doesn't come with the game. If you want a map today without spending anything, we built an interactive landmarks map from the first trailer, second trailer, the Netflix showcase and screenshots.

So, could Rockstar slip a map into the code-in-box edition? Sure. Retailers add inserts late. A map would cost little and win back some goodwill, but a late addition and a store sign are not the same as an announcement. The only people confirming this so far are a few store employees, set against a reporter who found five who had no idea and the original poster nowhere to be seen.

We would love to be wrong here. Unfortunately, until Rockstar or GameStop says so, we are filing it as a rumor.