GTA VI Took Eight Years to Build, and Rockstar's New Revelations Explain Why It Could Change Open-World Gaming

Rockstar Games has spent years telling us that Grand Theft Auto VI will be its most ambitious game yet. After reading Bloomberg's latest investigation into its development, that statement carries considerably more weight. On October 14, Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier published The Making of Grand Theft Auto VI, an extensive Businessweek feature examining how Rockstar built the game, the challenges that extended development and the changes the company underwent along the way. Schreier traveled to Scotland and interviewed senior Rockstar developers, offering an unusually detailed account of a studio that has historically preferred letting its games speak for themselves and there is a lot to unpack.

The biggest takeaway isn't simply that GTA VI is expensive or that its map is enormous. We already expected both. What's interesting is the amount of work Rockstar has invested in making its world respond to players, even when they're doing something the developers never specifically told them to do. That is the part of GTA VI that could make this game special. GTA VI Originally Had an Even Bigger Vision One of the more surprising revelations concerns Rockstar's original plans for the game. According to Schreier's reporting, GTA VI began with a concept that would have covered substantial areas of both North and South America. That project was eventually scaled back, with development concentrating on Vice City and the surrounding fictional state of Leonida. At first, hearing that Rockstar reduced the scope might sound disappointing. Who wouldn't want to explore an enormous world stretching across two continents? But there's a difference between making a game bigger and making it better. Personally, I'd rather have a detailed, believable version of Leonida than a massive map filled with locations that don't offer much beyond looking impressive. We've seen open-world games make the mistake of prioritizing square mileage over meaningful content. A large map is exciting for the first few hours. After that, players need reasons to keep exploring. If narrowing GTA VI's setting allowed Rockstar to spend more time building believable communities, interesting activities and environments that actually react to what we're doing, I think that was the right decision. Leonida doesn't need to be the biggest open world ever created. It needs to feel like somewhere people actually live. Red Dead Redemption 2 Played a Major Role in GTA VI's Development Another important detail involves Red Dead Redemption 2. Rockstar initially hoped to develop both games simultaneously, but Red Dead Redemption 2 eventually required a substantial share of the company's development resources and senior leadership. That contributed to GTA VI's lengthy production timeline. However, the work completed for Red Dead Redemption 2 also helped establish technology and systems that GTA VI could build upon. And I think that's an important distinction. When people discuss how long GTA VI has taken, they often treat the entire period since GTA V's release as though Rockstar has been working exclusively on GTA VI. That ignores the enormous undertaking that was Red Dead Redemption 2. Even today, Red Dead Redemption 2 remains one of the most impressive open-world games I've experienced, particularly when it comes to environmental detail, wildlife and how characters interact with the world. So when Rockstar talks about building on that foundation, that's exactly what I want to hear. I don't necessarily need GTA VI to reinvent everything that worked in Red Dead Redemption 2. I want Rockstar to take those systems, improve them and figure out how they function in a modern setting. Imagine the environmental detail of Red Dead Redemption 2 combined with the unpredictable situations and freedom that make Grand Theft Auto so entertaining. That's the kind of evolution worth waiting for. Rockstar Nearly Doubled Its Workforce The size of Rockstar's operation is another major part of Schreier's reporting. When Red Dead Redemption 2 launched in 2018, Rockstar employed approximately 2,441 people. Today, that number has reportedly grown to 4,711 employees across 12 offices. That's an extraordinary expansion. It also demonstrates just how much modern AAA development has changed. Rockstar isn't simply making a game with better graphics than GTA V. It's coordinating thousands of people across multiple locations to produce an enormous interconnected experience. But I also think this raises an important question. At what point does making a video game become too complicated? We all want detailed environments, realistic characters and more things to do. But those expectations come with enormous development costs and years of work. GTA VI might be one of the few games capable of justifying this scale because of the audience Rockstar has built. That doesn't mean every other studio should attempt to replicate its production model. I'd hate to see the industry take the wrong lesson from GTA VI and conclude that every major game needs thousands of employees and nearly a decade of development. Rockstar Created a Studio Dedicated to NPCs This might be one of my favorite revelations from the entire report. Rockstar reportedly established a Los Angeles studio dedicated to creating and developing non-playable characters for GTA VI. According to Rockstar development lead Rob Nelson, the team was struggling to meet its targets for the number of NPCs requiring writing, animation and production work. The scale of the problem was significant enough to contribute to development delays. Instead of abandoning its ambitions, Rockstar expanded its production capabilities to support them and this is exactly the kind of development decision that gets me excited about GTA VI. I've always believed that NPC behavior is one of the most important aspects of an open-world game. You can have beautiful buildings, realistic weather and hundreds of vehicles, but if the people walking around the world behave like lifeless decorations, the illusion starts falling apart. I want pedestrians to react differently depending on what's happening around them. I want neighborhoods to feel distinct. I want to see people going about their lives without everything revolving around the player. Most importantly, I want unexpected interactions. If Rockstar has invested this much into its NPC systems, I hope it means that exploring Vice City and Leonida will be entertaining even when we're not participating in a mission. And one story from Schreier's report suggests that might be exactly what we're getting. One Developer's Two-Hour Detour Might Be the Most Exciting GTA VI Detail Yet Rockstar technical lead Phil Hooker described an experience that perfectly illustrates what the studio is attempting to achieve. While testing GTA VI, Hooker was supposed to travel to a story mission. Instead, he accidentally bumped into another vehicle. The other driver became angry and retaliated, creating an argument that escalated into a confrontation. With his health running low, Hooker headed toward a convenience store to find supplies. But another NPC began insulting him, creating yet another confrontation. When Hooker entered the store, there was nobody operating the cash register. So he robbed it. That attracted police attention, forcing him to escape and eventually abandon his vehicle. He then found another car worth stealing and selling. While driving, he noticed another vehicle blasting music. Curious about where it was going, he followed it. That decision led him to a compound containing additional valuables, which he stole and attempted to sell. The encounter continued opening new opportunities. By the time Hooker finished, approximately two hours had passed. He still hadn't reached the story mission he originally intended to test.

This is what I want from GTA VI. Not necessarily the robbery itself or the police chase. I'm talking about the way one completely ordinary situation evolved into several unexpected experiences. There wasn't a mission marker telling Hooker to bump into a car. He wasn't following a checklist that instructed him to argue with a pedestrian, rob a convenience store or follow someone playing loud music. He was simply interacting with the world, and the world kept giving him reasons to continue. That's the difference between an open world that looks alive and one that actually feels alive. Think about how many times you've played GTA V and found yourself driving around Los Santos without a particular objective. Now imagine those drives regularly turning into unexpected situations. You might leave your house planning to buy clothes and end up involved in an argument, a robbery, a police chase or something completely different. And the best part is that you might never experience that exact sequence again. That's the kind of freedom I want Rockstar to prioritize. Of course, one developer's experience doesn't guarantee every player will encounter the same depth of interaction. We still need to see how consistently these systems work across the entire game. But if this story represents normal gameplay rather than an exceptional moment, GTA VI could establish a new standard for open-world interactivity. Rockstar Went to Miami to Understand the City Rockstar's research into Miami also deserves attention. According to Bloomberg, developers made multiple trips to the city to study the environments, people and culture that would eventually influence Vice City. These visits included helicopter flights to photograph the landscape, accompanying police officers through areas associated with criminal activity and visiting nightclubs to study their lighting and atmosphere. That last detail is particularly interesting because it demonstrates how far Rockstar is willing to go to capture the identity of a location. Miami isn't just palm trees, beaches and expensive cars. It's a city shaped by different cultures, neighborhoods, music and lifestyles. And if Rockstar wants Vice City to feel authentic, those differences need to exist beyond the game's most recognizable tourist destinations. I've said before that I'm especially interested in exploring the different counties and communities throughout Leonida. I don't want every neighborhood to feel interchangeable. I want the atmosphere to change as we travel from Vice City into smaller towns, rural communities and the wetlands. Even things like local weather could make a difference. Living in Georgia, I've seen how it can be sunny in one area, raining a few miles down the road and completely clear again somewhere else. That's the kind of environmental variation I'd love to experience in GTA VI. The idea of exploring Leonida during a tropical storm or watching the weather change while traveling between counties is genuinely exciting. Rockstar's research trips don't confirm any particular weather mechanic. But they do suggest that the studio is taking the setting seriously rather than simply creating a larger version of Vice City. Rockstar Had to Change Its Development Culture One of the most important aspects of Schreier's investigation isn't about the game itself. It's about the people making it. Rockstar has faced longstanding criticism over demanding working conditions, particularly during the development of Red Dead Redemption 2. GTA VI's production has involved changes in leadership, attempts to improve development practices and a broader restructuring of how the company operates. Following the departures of key figures, including co-founder Dan Houser, senior developers Rob Nelson, Aaron Garbut and Phil Hooker became central to the project's leadership. I think it's important to discuss these changes without treating the finished game as the only thing that matters. I'm excited for GTA VI. I've been looking forward to this game for years. But I don't believe developers should have to sacrifice their personal lives to make something we enjoy. If Rockstar needed more time to create the game while improving its working environment, I can respect that. There is also an ongoing labor dispute involving employees dismissed from Rockstar. Workers and their representatives have challenged the dismissals, while Rockstar maintains they involved information-security violations rather than union activity. Those competing claims should not be treated as settled facts. A game can be an extraordinary creative achievement while its developer still faces legitimate questions about how employees are treated. Both conversations deserve attention. GTA VI Could Make Rockstar's Future Games Easier to Develop One of the more encouraging revelations concerns what happens after GTA VI. Phil Hooker told Bloomberg that Rockstar believes the technology, tools and development teams assembled for this game will allow future projects to be completed more efficiently. Aaron Garbut also indicated that the company has completed significant foundational changes that it does not expect to rebuild from scratch for its next project. That's encouraging news. Because as much as I'm looking forward to GTA VI, I don't want to wait another 13 years for the next Grand Theft Auto game. And I definitely don't want Rockstar to reach a point where it can only release one major game every decade. I miss the era when Rockstar regularly delivered different experiences. There was a time when we received games like GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas, Bully, Midnight Club and Red Dead Redemption within a relatively short period. I'm not expecting Rockstar to return to that exact schedule. Modern games are considerably more complicated. But I'd love to see the studio use GTA VI's foundation to create new experiences without rebuilding everything. That could mean future Grand Theft Auto titles, another Red Dead Redemption or even a completely different franchise. However, Rockstar has not announced its next major project or promised a specific development timeline. The encouraging part is that the people building GTA VI recognize the problem and believe they've created tools that could help solve it. GTA VI's Delays Make More Sense Now GTA VI was originally expected in 2025 before being delayed to May 2026 and subsequently November 19, 2026. Those delays were disappointing. There's no reason to pretend otherwise. But the Bloomberg report gives us a better understanding of why this project has taken so long. Rockstar wasn't simply building a bigger map and adding better graphics. The company was creating new technology, expanding its workforce, developing more sophisticated NPC systems and changing how its teams worked together. Some of those ambitions reportedly became major production challenges. Could Rockstar have handled aspects of development differently? Probably. Could better planning have prevented some delays? Possibly. But I also think it's important to recognize that creating something on this scale involves uncertainty. I'd rather Rockstar delay GTA VI than release a game that isn't ready simply because everyone is tired of waiting. That doesn't mean developers should receive unlimited time or resources without accountability. It means quality should remain the priority. And with GTA VI scheduled to launch next month, we're finally approaching the point where players can judge whether that additional development time was justified. My Biggest Takeaway: GTA VI Needs to Be More Than Beautiful After going through Schreier's report, one thing stands out to me more than anything else. I don't think GTA VI's greatest achievement will necessarily be its graphics, map size or technical realism. I think it could be how the world responds to players. We've already seen how impressive the game looks. The screenshots and trailers have demonstrated an extraordinary amount of visual detail. But graphics alone aren't enough to keep me entertained for hundreds of hours. I want a world that constantly gives me something interesting to discover. I want to explore every county, interact with different communities, discover activities and experience situations that I wasn't expecting. I want the kind of experience Phil Hooker described, where a simple drive to a mission becomes an entirely different adventure. That's what made Red Dead Redemption 2 special to me, and it's what I hope Rockstar takes even further with GTA VI. I also hope the studio remembers that realism needs to serve gameplay. Not every activity needs an elaborate animation, and not every realistic feature automatically makes a game more enjoyable. There needs to be a balance between immersion and fun. If Rockstar gets that balance right, GTA VI could be something genuinely special. Not because it has the biggest budget or the most employees. But because it gives players a world worth spending time in. The Final Stretch Before November 19 Jason Schreier's Bloomberg investigation provides a fascinating look at what it has taken to build Grand Theft Auto VI. The original ambitions were enormous. Development required major organizational changes, new technology, thousands of employees and years of difficult decisions. The game has also helped reshape Rockstar itself. But the most exciting revelation is surprisingly simple. A developer attempted to test one story mission and spent two hours getting distracted by the world. That's exactly the kind of experience I want from Grand Theft Auto. Grand Theft Auto VI is scheduled to launch November 19, 2026, for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Rockstar has not announced a PC release date. We've waited a long time for this game. Now I want to see whether Leonida can deliver the kind of freedom Rockstar has spent eight years building. Because if a random trip to the convenience store can turn into two hours of unexpected gameplay, I can only imagine what happens when millions of players finally get their hands on it.