GTA 6 beginner guide: how to spend your first hours in Leonida

A launch-day plan for players new to Grand Theft Auto — settings, pacing, money and what not to rush.

Start with settings, not story. Aim assist, camera height and vehicle camera lag change how the whole game feels, and they are far harder to relearn twenty hours in.

Follow the opening missions until the map opens properly. Grand Theft Auto games gate useful tools behind story beats, and wandering early usually means driving a bad car with no money.

Learn the two-protagonist rhythm early. Lucia and Jason are both playable, so treat switching as a tool: park each of them somewhere useful rather than leaving one stranded across the state.

Bank the first real payout instead of spending it. Early upgrades that improve travel — a decent vehicle, a safehouse near the action — save more time than cosmetics.

Turn on your own guardrails: if you want the story unspoiled, mute the obvious tags and stick to hub content marked spoiler-free.