Former Rockstar Employee Reveals How Long GTA 6 Has Been in Development

It will be on May 26, 2026, that we’ll finally get our hands on GTA 6 — meaning Rockstar Games’ sandbox will have been in development for an undetermined number of years. Although the date doesn’t seem like a coincidence, it might not be final. That’s because an insider has reported that the game could face yet another delay.

GTA 6: Trailer 2

The exact moment when the company began working on the new Vice City title had remained a mystery—until now. Recently, former Rockstar North environment designer David O’Reilly shed some light on the matter. In a video posted on his YouTube channel, the ex-Rockstar employee shared his thoughts on everything the company showcased with the release of the second trailer. His statements carry significant weight and credibility, as he was directly involved in the development of Red Dead Redemption 2 and the early stages of GTA VI.

His career at Rockstar Games began in 2018 and ended in 2023, and during those five years, he learned that Grand Theft Auto VI began development shortly after Arthur Morgan’s adventure came to a close. With that in mind, we can be fairly certain that the game will have gone through eight years of hard work by the time it’s released—assuming the May 26, 2026 date actually holds. Of course, such lengthy development cycles are nothing new when it comes to Rockstar’s major titles.

Red Dead Redemption 2 also required eight years of effort, with production beginning in 2010. Meanwhile, GTA 5 started taking shape in Dan Houser’s mind around 2009 and was released in 2013. To compare Rockstar’s work with another major studio success, The Last of Us Part II began development in 2014 and launched in 2020. Of course, there are far more turbulent and wild examples—Final Fantasy XV, for instance, didn’t see the light of day until a full 10 years after its reveal at E3 2006. Similarly, The Last Guardian was delayed until 2016, despite being conceived back in 2007.