Grand Theft Auto 6
A former Rockstar Games 3D environment artist who worked on Grand Theft Auto 6 has confirmed it’s been in development since at least 2018 while reacting to the game’s second trailer.
Up until last week, it felt like it had been a painfully long time since we’d heard anything concrete about GTA 6. Just look at all of the theories and delirium about when we might finally receive a second trailer for the game, and you’ll see just how bad it all was. In reality, though, we’ve been waiting a whole lot longer to learn about Rockstar’s next big game.
Ever since Red Dead Redemption 2 launched towards the end of 2018, everyone has wondered what Rockstar was cooking up next. It was widely assumed to be the next Grand Theft Auto, something that was confirmed in 2022 in a simple post about GTA Online’s future. That leaves the development timeline a little murky, but we now know for sure when work started.
GTA 6 Has Been In The Works For Seven Years Now
It'll Be Eight By The Time It Launches
As pointed out by Twitter user and Rockstar sleuth videotechuk_, former Rockstar North environment artist David O’Reilly (who goes by Game World Art on YouTube), who worked on Red Dead Redemption 2 and then on GTA 6 during its early development, recently shared a video reacting to the game’s recent screenshot extravaganza over on its website.
Before reacting to the screenshots themselves, though, O’Reilly shared his background with Rockstar Games and noted that he started working on Grand Theft Auto 6 in 2018 and was on the project all the way up until 2023. O’Reilly also specifically pointed out that development started «after we wrapped up on RDR2», confirming the initial start date.
I worked on GTA 6 from 2018 to 2023. Went onto it after we wrapped up on RDR2. It’s fascinating having a look at all this stuff. — David O’Reilly
This means that GTA 6 has been in development for around seven years and, if it doesn’t get delayed again, will have been in the works for eight by the time it launches. Of course, this doesn’t come as a surprise considering how long these games take and how many rumours and leaks there have been over the years, but it’s still good to know for sure how long the project has been in development.
