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Being a Grand Theft Auto fan has been an act of commiseration in the past couple of years. What begins as a genuine love for Rockstar Games' groundbreaking series seems to have become an accumulation of bad news, with multiple delays, controversies at the company, and more getting in the way of enjoying the next installment of the series. And now, another challenger has arisen to the prospect of playing the highly-anticipated GTA VI - at least, if you're a player in Russia - as one organization has called for a complete national ban on the game.

The story comes from GameRant, who were themselves reporting from a (translated) page on Russia's news.ru. According to the articles, the call for a ban comes from the World Russian People's Council, who put out a statement calling the game "a particularly dangerous tool of influence," and arguing for its national ban in the entirely of Russia. Mikhail Ivanov, the organization's deputy chair, said developer Rockstar Games "deliberately agree[s] to include destructive and vulgar content in their product, which is completely unacceptable for the moral health of society."

Two things to note here, though, before we leave you. Though the GTA series is admittedly awash in violence, a big part of the Russian group's complaint here is that the game makes for a "direct and cynical violation of basic moral norms and traditional spiritual values" by including... a male stripper. Take that for what you will, reader. 

The second big thing is that, though the Council is certainly not without its influence, it's not an actual governing body. As pointed out by GameRant, any possible ban of the game would lie in the hands of the Roskomnadzor agency, who have not made public comments about the game as of this writing.

Grand Theft Auto VI is currently  slated for release November 19.

The gaming industry has come a long way since Pong blew all our minds in the 70s. We've got everything you need to know about the next big thing in games. Of course, Grand Theft Auto VI is going to be the big game of 2026, but there are plenty of other games coming out between now and then. Here is our starter guide for every gamer:

• All upcoming games in 2025 and beyond
• Gamify My Life, our weekly gaming column designed
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And be sure to check Popverse regularly for the latest gaming news.