Few announcements, if any at all, generate as much excitement and speculation as a new Grand Theft Auto game. After much anticipation (and leaks), Grand Theft Auto 6 was finally revealed to the rest of the world, setting new records and basically overshadowing every other video game reveal for some time. Over a week after it nearly broke the internet, people are still talking about GTA 6, particularly, regarding its delayed PC release, which your PC may or may not be able to run anyway, depending on how much money you threw at it today.
The initial revelation that Grand Theft Auto 6 will initially be released on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X in 2025, with a later date for the PC version, has sparked significant discussion. To shed light on this decision, Mike York, an animator who previously worked for Rockstar Games, has offered insights into why PlayStation, and, in general, consoles, remains a priority for GTA 6’s initial release.
York, who contributed to the creation of Grand Theft Auto 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2 during his tenure at Rockstar, emphasized the historical sales dominance of PlayStation as a key factor. According to York, PlayStation has traditionally been the biggest seller for Rockstar’s major titles, influencing the company’s strategy to focus on optimizing the game for the most popular platforms first. This approach aligns with Rockstar’s business strategy to maximize returns on the investment they made, ensuring that the most resources are dedicated to platforms with the highest sales potential.
While skeptics might criticize Rockstar for going where the money is, it’s a shrewd business move that every other video game developer is familiar with, including small-time studios. Larian Studios, the makers of this year’s Game of the Year winner, Baldur’s Gate 3, went through the long and arduous process of releasing the game through Early Access on PCs via Steam because they knew this was its best chance at seeing the game to completion. Even though it later blew up in its release, the studio prioritized what is in its best interest. In fact, Larian didn’t expect to see Baldur’s Gate 3 succeed on PlayStation 5. Now, it’s on all platforms, including Xbox Series S/X.
More importantly, a critical aspect York highlighted (and many gloss over) is the technical challenges of developing a PC version. Unlike consoles, where the hardware configuration is standardized, PCs present a vast and wide array of unique configurations, each with its own set of CPUs, GPUs, and memory usage patterns. This variability necessitates extensive testing to ensure compatibility across different hardware setups, a process that is both time-consuming and resource-intensive. York used the problematic PC release of Batman: Arkham Knight as an example of what can happen when a complex game isn’t adequately tested across various PC configurations.
To be honest, York didn’t even need to use Arkham Knight, which is receiving backlash for its problematic Switch port, as an example. Most recently, titles like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor had terrible performance on PC. Even last year’s GOTY winner, and one of the most GOTY’d games of all time, Elden Ring, wasn’t spared from such issues.
Framed in this perspective, it makes sense for Rockstar and other developers, like Square Enix, to delay the release of the PC port of their best-selling titles.
York’s commentary also touches on the development process itself, noting that while a PC version of a game like GTA 5 exists in the background during the development of console versions, it’s not fully polished. The focus is on ensuring that the console versions are optimized and fully functional before turning attention to the PC port. This process often involves not just polishing the existing game for PC but also enhancing it to take advantage of the more robust hardware capabilities typical of PCs.
In his video, York asks the gaming community to be patient and give Rockstar the “benefit of the doubt.” He stresses the complexity of game development, particularly for a title as expansive as GTA 6, and the need for extensive testing to deliver a high-quality product. York’s plea for understanding reflects the challenges game developers face in balancing the demands of a diverse gaming audience with the technical and resource constraints inherent in game development.
The delay in releasing GTA 6 on PC, while frustrating for some gamers, is a strategic decision by Rockstar to focus on the platforms that historically generate the most sales. It also reflects the company’s commitment to quality, ensuring that when the game does arrive on PC, it meets the high expectations of its audience.
For now, eager fans can pour over our screenshots of the record-breaking GTA 6 trailer, which comes with several nifty details that’s easy to miss at first glance.
