GTA 6 may be a moderately sized game that will expand with regular updates

Depending on the source, Grand Theft Auto 6 may or may not be in development currently. It’s the Schrodinger’s cat of video game rumours, trapped in a field of quantum rumour entanglement where every observation changes the state of the news scoop. Something like that, you get the idea. With GTA V still bringing in a ton of cash thanks to its massively popular online mode, Rockstar hasn’t been in a rush to pump out a sequel, and they’ll likely their time with the eventual release of a new license to print money.

Which is good! In a new Kotaku report detailing how Rockstar Games is looking to clean up its culture of crunch image by fostering a healthier workplace for its employees, sources described development on “a new entry in the Grand Theft Auto series”. Not Grand Theft Auto 6 mind you, but a new chapter nonetheless.

According to Kotaku, Rockstar is looking at releasing a “moderately sized” GTA than can be expanded upon after launch with regular updates, creating a cadence of content similar to what GTA Online currently experiences. Rockstar’s school of thought behind this idea is that it’ll be more efficient to develop a product along these lines and thus avoid a period of crunch, something which the studio was slammed for when details on the gruelling development of Red Dead Redemption 2 emerged.

It’s worth noting that this plan is still in the idea phase over at Rockstar, as the studio is still in the very early stages of development on the next GTA. It’s not set in stone, as the development model could easily swing back and favour a full release via the old-fashioned GTA buffet, creating a smorgasboard of content, story and all manner of activities to pursue within that digital world when it eventually comes.

It’ll also be interesting to see how GTA 6 takes advantage of next-gen hardware, as it’s clearly too late in the current console lifecycle for Rockstar. The idea of a Grand Theft Auto humming and purring on a PS5 or Xbox Series X and its solid-state drive technology though? That should be worth the price of admission when it eventually emerges in whatever shape that Rockstar deems right for the next chapter in one of the most influential game series of all time.

Last Updated: April 16, 2020