GTA 6 Facing Further Delays as Rockstar Pushes for Office Return

Fans have been eagerly awaiting any news on the next entry in the massively popular Grand Theft Auto franchise, GTA 6, which has been in development at Rockstar Games for several years now. An initial 2025 target release has been the goal, however sources familiar with the development process have revealed to Kotaku that compulsory returns to the office may end up pushing the game’s launch further into the future.

In February, Rockstar mandated all employees return to the office five days a week beginning in April, much to the surprise and frustration of many remote workers who had been successfully contributing from home. While cited reasons included security and quality control, sources say GTA 6 production has begun facing delays, worrying leadership who fear missing the 2025 window and a potential slip into 2026.

Growing Concerns Over Crunch

One Rockstar employee spoke to Aftermath, expressing concern that reverting to mandatory office work could see a backslide towards the “toxic crunch culture” that had plagued prior titles. Even if an internal or public delay only extends the game into late 2025 or 2026, increased pressures from tightened schedules still risk overworking teams. Fans will have to wait for any official confirmation from Rockstar on the status of GTA 6.

At this stage, the spring 2025 target remains the goal internally. However sources note a fall 2025 launch seems more realistic given current uncertainties, with delaying until 2026 a potential “fallback plan”. As with past games, Rockstar is known to keep plans under wraps for as long as possible. Only time will tell what impact the return to office mandate has on the hugely anticipated GTA 6 and when in the pipeline it may arrive.