Although it is known that GTA 6 will be released next year, Rockstar Games has not yet announced an exact release date.
A recent report by well-known industry insider Jason Schreier, which was published on Bloomberg (behind a paywall), is particularly interesting. According to this report, the development of the open-world title is in its final phase.
As Schreier reports, Rockstar Games is now entering the final stage of development for “Grand Theft Auto VI”. As a result, the studio has made some significant changes.
The company’s management is now asking all employees to return to the office five days a week. The aim is to ensure that there are no further safety breaches in connection with the project.
In particular, the huge leak in September 2022, in which numerous gameplay videos and other details about GTA 6 were stolen from the servers, is still fresh in the minds of those responsible. Under no circumstances should a similar catastrophe happen again shortly before the title’s completion.
However, the employer’s decision has met with little enthusiasm among employees, as the report shows. The corona pandemic has shown that many tasks can also be completed from home. Nevertheless, there is a general interest in releasing GTA 6 according to the schedule, and corresponding bonuses may be planned.
Jenn Kolbe, Head of Publishing at Rockstar, emphasized in an internal memo to employees that the changes made put the studio in the best position to deliver the next Grand Theft Auto with the required quality and sophistication. This is in line with the planned scope and ambition of the game.
However, it is difficult to estimate exactly when Rockstar Games intends to release “Grand Theft Auto VI” based solely on the new Bloomberg report. There may not yet be a specific release date internally.
It is conceivable that the release will be postponed further if problems arise during development in the coming weeks or months.
The current announcement is that GTA 6 will be released in 2025 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. A PC version has not yet been announced; based on Rockstar’s history, it will probably be released a few months or even years after the console versions.
