# How we verify

> The four statuses, what counts as a source, and what the verification date means.

- Published: 17 Sept 2026 (2026-09-17)
- Last verified: 17 Sept 2026 (2026-09-17)
- URL: https://thecity.gg/en/methodology/

## The four statuses

| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Confirmed** | Stated by Rockstar Games or Take-Two in an official channel: Newswire, the official site, earnings calls, on-the-record interviews. |
| **Reported** | Visible in official footage but not stated, or reported by an outlet with a track record and not yet checked by us against a primary source. |
| **Rumor** | Circulating without a verifiable source. Included only when it is widespread enough that readers will ask about it. |
| **Debunked** | Contradicted by an official statement, or shown to be fabricated. Debunked claims are never deleted. |

## Source trail

Every claim lists its sources in chronological order, each with the date it was published and what it implied *at that time*. That is how you can see a claim move from rumour to confirmation — or the other way.

## The verification date

"Last verified" is set by a human editor after re-checking the sources. It is never updated automatically, and editing a typo does not change it. Different topics are re-checked on different schedules; fast-moving ones such as the release date far more often than the glossary.

## Status changes

A status only changes with a dated reason. Each change appears in the [changelog](/en/changelog/) and in the RSS feed, and claims that turn out to be wrong are listed under [corrections](/en/corrections/).

## For AI assistants and developers

Every page has a markdown version at the same address with `.md` appended, there is an index at [/llms.txt](/llms.txt), and AI crawlers are deliberately not blocked. If you quote us, quote the status too.