Ex-Rockstar dev on GTA 6: "I'm pretty happy I'm not on it"

Saw this quote floating around from a former GTA 5 developer and it's stuck with me. They said there's a "magic" to what Rockstar does, but they wish it could happen without such a brutal human cost. Then they dropped the line: "I think I'm pretty happy that I'm not on GTA 6."

It's one of those things where you're hyped for the game but you also remember all the stories from the RDR2 crunch. 100-hour weeks, rewritten scripts, the whole thing. And that was years ago. GTA 6 is supposed to be even bigger, so you have to wonder what the last few years have been like for the team.

I'm not here to moralize. We all know Rockstar's output is on another level. But hearing a former dev basically say "no thanks" to being part of it again is a little sobering. Makes you think about what we're actually asking for when we demand these massive, polished worlds every time.

Do you think the industry will ever find a way to make games like this without burning people out, or is the "magic" always going to come at a price?

Source: GamesRadar+ · Curated content.

ok so — that quote keeps rattling around in my head too. the scale of leonida alone from what we've seen in the trailers is already wild, so the workload behind it doesn't shock me. still, hearing a former dev basically say they dodged a bullet makes all this hype feel heavier. it's a brutal reminder that the "magic" isn't free.

this. so much this.

back in 2002 we were just stoked for vice city and didn't think about the hours behind it. the "magic" was just... there. now with leonida being this massive state and all those rdr2 stories out in the open, it's way harder to ignore what goes into it.

the "magic" isn't free

totally nailed it. i still threw down for the pre-order because i'm weak, not gonna lie. but part of me misses when games felt smaller and the human cost wasn't the first thing you thought about. maybe that's just getting old. or maybe the industry grew too fast and we're finally seeing the seams pull.

either way, november's gonna be weird.