Rockstar Games is taking its marketing for GTA 6 very seriously. That's right: instead of just distributing trailers and posters, the studio is currently transforming real-life Miami into a Vice City backdrop. The peak so far: On September 22, 2026, a gigantic, pink 'Welcome to Vice City' sign was hoisted onto the roof of the Kaseya Center, home of the Miami Heat, right in the heart of the city. According to consistent reports, the cost for this is almost a million US dollars.
Where Exactly is the New Vice City Sign Hanging in Miami?
The lettering now sits atop the round dome roof of the Kaseya Center in the heart of Downtown Miami. A helicopter flew the multi-ton individual letters onto the roof one by one, after which ground crews screwed and secured them. The result is deliberately positioned to be particularly effective from the air: every aircraft landing at Miami International Airport gets a view of the 'Welcome to Vice City' lettering, complete with a small palm tree logo. This precise calculation is behind the entire campaign, as it aims to attract attention without Rockstar having to show a single new gameplay detail.
Specifically, local media reports indicate that Miami-Dade County is set to receive around 975,000 US dollars from Rockstar for the use of the arena roof. Part of the money is apparently intended for the long-promised development of a vacant lot behind the arena, for example, for a public park. Thus, the figure "almost a million dollars" from the title is not a marketing exaggeration but a very real sum that was actually negotiated in a municipal contract with an authority.
How Long Will the Sign Stay Up and Who is Criticizing the Deal?
As it stands, the sign is expected to remain up for a year or at least until the last Miami Heat home game of the 2026/27 season – whichever comes first. However, the deal is not without controversy: reports indicate that voices from the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office have criticized the contract, arguing that GTA games, in their view, glorify violence against police officers. Part of the criticism also targeted the fact that the revenues from the deal do not flow directly into the budget of law enforcement agencies. Nevertheless, the action was approved, and the letters have long been installed on the roof.
For context: Previous GTA installments also had elaborate real-life campaigns, such as large-scale poster and mural actions around the launch of GTA 5 in 2013. However, what Rockstar is doing here with GTA 6 significantly breaks that mold: In parallel with the Vice City sign, other campaigns have been running for weeks across Miami, Los Angeles, and New York, including a collaboration with Spotify featuring its own poster designs. For us at Scene Gamers, this is already one of the most elaborate marketing campaigns the gaming industry has ever seen – and a strong signal of how much Rockstar and Take-Two are hoping for from the November launch. The installation on September 22 was also followed live on social media: numerous fans spent the whole day glued to live camera feeds of the city to watch the letters land piece by piece on the roof.
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If you want to follow the preparations for the launch: We have already reported, among other things, how Rockstar is already fighting against scalpers before the actual launch. GTA 6 is currently scheduled for release on November 19, 2026, for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, and the game can already be pre-ordered via the official Rockstar Store.
Source: IGN
What do you think of Rockstar's million-dollar deal for a real-life Vice City sign – clever marketing or wasted money? Let us know in the comments.
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