GTA VI in Japan may be cut, Vandal reports (unconfirmed)

The Japanese version of GTA VI may have cut content, according to a report Vandal published on November 12. The main clue is the download size: 208 GB in Japan, compared with 212 GB in most countries.

There is no official confirmation from Rockstar or Take-Two. This is a hypothesis based on circumstantial evidence.

A four-gigabyte gap in the preload

Preloading has been available since November 10. According to Vandal, the roughly 4 GB difference could be due to scenes that were removed or shortened, along with their audio, or to the removal of some venues.

The outlet itself acknowledges that we will have to wait until launch on November 19 to compare versions from different regions and find out what actually changes.

The Japanese rating omits strong sexual content

In Japan the game is rated CERO Z, the highest rating, reserved for players 18 and older. According to Vandal, the community has noticed that its description makes no mention of strong sexual content, something that PEGI in Europe and the ESRB in the United States and Canada do list.

That is why the outlet considers it likely that there are changes to nudity at the very least. It also suggests, without concrete evidence, that dismemberment or the goriest scenes could be removed.

A common occurrence in Japan

Vandal points to other games that have been changed for that market:

• GTA V, with cuts to some violent and nude scenes.
• Resident Evil Requiem, criticized this year by Japanese players for altering its goriest parts.
• Baldur’s Gate 3 and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, among others.

You can also read how GTA VI came close to being banned in South Korea, according to Inven.

What this means for you

The evidence Vandal gathers refers to the Japanese version, although the outlet does not rule out changes in other countries. If you want to know what content differs, you will have to wait for the comparisons after launch. You can find more context on dates and preloading in our launch story.