Rockstar’s latest quality control: an internal analysis revealed by former technical director
A few months after the world release of Grand Theft Auto VI, scheduled for 19 November 2026, an unpublished detail emerges on the process of development of the game. Obbe Vermeij, former technical director of Rockstar North (who contributed to shaping the 3D universe of GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas and GTA IV), told how Rockstar adopted unusual practice to ensure the final quality of his titles. Before each GTA game reached the "gold" state, the studio suspended development and the entire development team played the title from start to finish, dedicating two weeks to identify any bugs. This routine, born in 1995 when Vermeij served as technical director, provided that programmers and artists worked for eight hours a day with headphones in different departments, only occasionally attending meetings. The goal was to experience the game directly from the beginning to the end, identifying defects and inconsistencies that would otherwise have escaped. As Vermeij explained on X: “Working at GTA 3, Vice City, SA and GTA 4 was more like a normal job than people imagine. Most of us worked with headphones in their own area: graphics, programming, music, for 8 hours a day. We had very few meetings. Only a small number of people made important decisions regarding gameplay and plot.” This practice, which was maintained during the development of GTA III until GTA IV, consisted of playing each mission in order, living the whole story and focusing on the correction of an infinite set of bugs. This was an approach focused on the player’s experience, aimed at ensuring that the game was the smoothest and most flaws-free possible before the launch. Tradition continued until GTA IV, but it is unclear whether it is still in force within the Rockstar studio for Grand Theft Auto VI.
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