GTA 6 Developer Discusses Game Delays and New Studio Focused on NPC Creation

The path to release took longer than originally anticipated.

Grand Theft Auto VI developers had to revise production plans multiple times because they realized they could not finish everything they had planned by the initial deadline.

Recently, in a conversation with Bloomberg, co-studio head Rob Nelson revealed a notable production detail. At a certain point in the work, the team assessed the number of NPCs that needed to be scripted and animated to achieve their goals. They realized that Rockstar Games did not have the production capacity for it. Nelson said that “the projections we were given were terrifying.”

The situation was so bad that a decision was made to open an entire studio in Los Angeles, whose employees—writers, producers, and others—would focus on a single task: creating characters.

Another development director, Phil Hooker, explained that the developers could have met the original schedule, but then GTA VI would have turned out differently:

It is noted that the resulting delays turned out to be for the better for some team members. Important development decisions were made, and the game gradually took shape. Hooker recalled one of his test playthroughs. Back then, he did not reach the required mission even after a couple of hours because something interesting was constantly happening in the world:

Grand Theft Auto VI is scheduled for release on November 19, 2026, for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles.