Grand Theft Auto 6 is expected to release after Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2017, but contrary to popular belief, the development of one game shouldn’t have too much impact on the other. Based on what we know, we’ll explain why GTA 6 won’t come any later because of RDR 2.
The main reason why Grand Theft Auto fans shouldn’t be too worried is based on how Rockstar Games is divided. Both titles are technically under development by the same company, but they are being worked on concurrently by two very large, and different, divisions.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is officially the brainchild of Rockstar San Diego, and, from what we can tell, it’s being primarily crafted by a group a little bigger than Bethesda Game Studios. It took those guys quite a few years to push out Fallout 4, much like San Diego’s silence about Red Dead Redemption 2, but it eventually got there. The main thing to note about a hypothetical Grand Theft Auto 6, however, is that it's assumed to be in the early stages of creation over at Rockstar North. It’s an entirely different branch of the company working on its own task. In other words, one big project shouldn’t necessarily interfere with the other.
What also separates Rockstar Games from other triple-A developers is just how vast it is. The entire studio umbrella has 10 active subdivisions that account for well over 1,000 employees in all. Several of those, like Rockstar Lincoln, Rockstar Leeds and Rockstar New England, aren’t even suited for making original games. They’re leveraged purely for ports and support on whatever projects are available. The original Red Dead Redemption was primarily helped along by the latter two subsidiaries, for example.
While it’s true North and San Diego have coordinated on Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto 5 when necessary, by and large, these two groups continually work on their own content and have plenty of additional hands on deck from other parts of the globe. Cooperation is likely devised by project heads when it can be spared, but not if it’s going to impact the release date of another big property. In other words, Grand Theft Auto 6 should arrive around the time it was always supposed to.
What could make Grand Theft Auto 6 release later than expected isn’t so much about Red Dead Redemption 2 as it is what Rockstar hopes to accomplish financially. Release calendars are mostly driven by fiscal responsibilities. Rockstar likely wants to make as much money off Red Dead Redemption 2 as possible, so there may be some distance required to capitalize on that product. Grand Theft Auto 6 might also be needed to pad a predicted slower financial period too. Like everything else, most of these situations tie to money.
While crossover between Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto 6 undoubtedly exists, Rockstar is so big that it doesn’t matter. The studio has its plan with more than enough manpower. What happens will ultimately be a reflection of it.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is expected to release in 2017 with Grand Theft Auto 6 sometime thereafter.
Do you think Red Dead will be the source of a late GTA arrival? Tell us in the comments section!
