GTA 6 entering final stages of development as Rockstar asks staff to return to office

At the time of writing, the GTA 6 trailer is sitting pretty at 178 million views on YouTube. But that’s not what most people are interested in. What we want to know is exactly when it’s coming out. Well, the end may be in sight for the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto game.

According to a report from Bloomberg‘s Jason Schreier, Rockstar is asking all staff to return to the office for “five days a week starting in April.” This is for “security and productivity reasons,” according to Rockstar Head of Publishing Jenn Kolbe.

The report goes on to say GTA 6 is about to “enter the final stretch of development.” This means we’re getting ever closer to its release, though we obviously still don’t know when that’s likely to happen.

Employees “not thrilled,” it seems

The fact that Rockstar Games is putting out the clarion call for employees shows the company is looking to end hybrid working conditions. It’s a topic that’s been quite prevalent in the working world, and Rockstar asking staff to return to the office is likely due to security breaches, such as the great GTA 6 leak of 2022.

Companies asking people to shift to on-site working on a more permeant basis is becoming more common as the memories of the pandemic begin to fade for a lot of people. However, such a move may prove unpopular with those in the gaming industry who have adjusted to working remotely.

That aside, we don’t exactly know when the game itself will actually be launching, even if it is heading towards the finish line. We’re being told it’s aiming for a 2025 release, so we’re still looking at nearly another year yet, give or take.

No doubt it’s going to be one of the biggest releases of all time. Given the legacy of Grand Theft Auto 5 – which came out over 10 years ago, don’t forget – there’s no way the follow-up is going to be anything other than a money-printing license for Rockstar.