With GTA 6's Dating System Incoming, a Surprising Percentage of Adults Think Investing in a Video Game Relationship Is Cheating

GTA 6 is coming in November and focuses on a relationship between its dual protagonists, Jason and Lucia. The recent GTA 6 launch trailer featured three steamy intimate scenes in the shower, and, according to GTA 6 previews, Jason and Lucia can kiss at the touch of a button and are able to walk around holding hands. Screenshots suggest the pair can go on beach dates and shopping trips, and Rockstar has said that their relationship can blossom or wilt depending on how quickly you text back on the in-game mobile phones.

That Bonnie and Clyde-style relationship is at the center of Rockstar’s upcoming game, and you’ll be able to engage with it as much or as little as you want. But you might want to speak to your romantic partner in real life first.

In September, British polling company YouGov asked 4,000 British adults whether they’d consider dating in a video game as cheating or not. Around 6% of respondents said they would consider it cheating, while a further 19% said that while they didn't consider it cheating, they wouldn’t be okay with it.

That’s a fairly surprising number of people who think smashing pixels together is some kind of betrayal. Women were considerably more against it than men. Only 4% of men would consider it cheating, while 7% of women would. Of those that didn’t consider it cheating but still weren’t okay with it, that was 13% of the men and 24% of the women asked.

The BBC published an article on the poll, leading with a headline that was a question: can you cheat on someone with a video game character? This framing has led to a bit of backlash from players.

“No, video game characters are not real, get a grip ffs!” said Stetson Spatula. “Can you get arrested for murdering someone on call of duty?” asked another X / Twitter user.

A lot of the responses focused on established games such as The Sims, which let you live an alternative domestic life where your Sims marry, have children, and follow career paths while decking out their house. The perceived hypocrisy here is that players have been roleplaying relationships for a long time before GTA 6.

GTA 6's potential for "cheating," has come up before. In August, we reported on how a swath of angry spouses on social media said they thought GTA 6's relationship mechanic was so in depth that it was equivalent to cheating on your real-life partner and worth breaking up over. Over on TikTok, for example, a number of concerned people said they wouldn't let their partner to play the game.

Rockstar has also been very clear that you don't actually have to engage with this part of GTA 6 if you don't want to. Jason and Lucia want a relationship at the start of the game, but it's up to the player to actively pursue that. If you don't, they won't be as head-over-heels for each other, but will still have each other's backs when it matters most. If you do choose to make the two a power couple, you'll likely get more mileage out of the game, though.

"When you bring them together, it feels like you’re a steward of their relationship, and you feel protective of them as a unit," Rockstar North co-studio head, Rob Nelson, told IGN. "But this is something we did not know when we started, and it really had to be something we felt our way through. But I will say that whether you’re getting in trouble, or you’re running from the cops, or getting in a car, or waiting for the other one — playing as them together feels very cool. It feels like you’re taking care of them, if that’s something you’re into."

Rockstar is currently pushing hard on the marketing front ahead of next month’s release. Last week saw real cars modified to look like GTA vehicles being driven around Miami.