Grand Theft Auto VI came remarkably close to being refused an age rating in South Korea, a decision that would have blocked the game's official release in the country. The classification process stretched across three reviews over five weeks before the board finally granted the game an Adults Only rating on October 16.
Meeting minutes from South Korea's Game Content Rating Board (GCRB), obtained by Korean gaming outlet Inven, show just how divided the committee was. At the first review on September 10, the members split evenly: three voted for an Adults Only rating, while the other three wanted to refuse the game's classification entirely.
The sticking point was not the series' trademark violence, crime or drugs. Committee members were instead concerned about the frequent appearance of male genital nudity without any sexual context, with some members arguing the scenes were too explicit while others maintained they were not enough to justify refusing the entire game.
Timing worked in the game's favor. South Korea revised its classification rules on sensuality and nudity in September 2025, moving away from regulations under which certain types of bodily exposure could automatically trigger a refusal, and toward judging whether such exposure is directly and specifically depicted. GTA 6 became one of the first major games examined under the updated rules, making the decision a potential precedent for future releases.
The process itself took weeks. After the first review ended without a decision, the committee requested further examination, and due to security concerns the playable version of GTA 6 was not delivered to reviewers until September 28. A second review on October 2 was postponed again so members could study the game longer, and a further meeting set for October 8 was canceled for lack of a quorum. and researchers who played it reported that the exposure appeared mostly as background content and did not lead to any sexual interactions.
By the final review, the international picture also weighed on the discussion. Ten overseas rating boards, including the ESRB, PEGI and the boards of Australia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, had already approved GTA 6 for adult audiences, and members raised both the prospect of South Korea standing alone in refusing the game and whether a refusal would have clear legal grounds. On October 16, with all nine members present, eight voted for an Adults Only rating and only one still backed a refusal — and the final descriptors cover Sensuality, Violence, Crime, Drugs and Language, with Horror and Gambling considered in the preliminary review but left out.
One question remains unanswered in the documents. The committee had requested modifications after its first review, but the records do not confirm whether Rockstar Games changed any content, or whether the scenes in dispute were already absent from the version the committee examined.
GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S, and South Korean players will now be able to pick it up on day one like everyone else.
Sources: Inven, Game Content Rating Board
