Dan Houser, Rockstar Games co-founder who departed the company in 2020, gave an extensive interview recounting his career and revealing details about Grand Theft Auto 6's development. According to Houser, the game was originally conceived as "Project Americas," with plans to cover "big swaths" of land in both the north and south of the United States before being scaled back to the current Leonida (Miami) focused concept.
One of the biggest hurdles faced was the sheer number of NPCs needed to populate the game world. According to Rob Nelson, co-head of development, "the projections they were giving us were horrifying." The solution was to establish an entire studio in Los Angeles dedicated solely to writing and animating non-playable characters, a factor that contributed to the May-to-November 2025 release delay. Houser also reflected on his other projects, including his assessment of Max Payne 3 as a personal "failure" and public reaction to Red Dead Redemption's controversial ending, which surprised him with its intensity.
On another historical note, Houser revealed that GTA 3's iconic cover art was altered at the last minute due to the September 11, 2001 attacks. Rockstar also faced challenges producing Bully and continued evolving its approach to realism in GTA 6, with the team visiting Miami for field research in nightclubs and riding along with local police officers. The level of detail ranges from lighting systems synchronized with music to unique animations and scripts for each nightclub patron.
