Rockstar worries a delay is likely.

A new report out of Kotaku says that production on Grand Theft Auto 6 is falling behind at developer Rockstar Games. After being officially revealed at the end of 2023, Grand Theft Auto 6 was given a rather open release window of "2025."

Grand Theft Auto 6 was the focus of attention before it was ever even announced by Rockstar. Assets for the game were stolen from Rockstar Games as part of a huge leak in 2022. Even the game's reveal trailer was leaked ahead of schedule. Fans were downright rabid for information and media on the sequel as the pervious game in the franchise, Grand Theft Auto 5, was initially released over a decade ago for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Now according to Kotaku's reporting, it is looking "more and more likely that the sequel might not land until late 2025." Oddly enough, Kotaku's reporting is the only place that seems to indicate Rockstar was ever aiming for an "early" 2025 release as all official communication has just said "2025." In a worst-case scenario, Grand Theft Auto 6's release may even be pushed into 2026. According to today's reporting, production on Grand Theft Auto 6 is starting to fall behind schedule.

Back in February, Rockstar Games said that they would make it mandatory to return to office work for five days a week starting in April. This led to some issues with employees that feel "like they are being pushed out after being hired remotely." A couple of the main reasons given for this return to office mandate lie in security concerns and quality control. Anonymous sources say that another, undisclosed reason, for the mandate is because production on Grand Theft Auto 6 is "falling behind."

The leads at Rockstar are reportedly "nervous and worried about the game missing the 2025 window and slipping into 2026." As previously mentioned, Kotaku alleges that Rockstar is still aiming for Grand Theft Auto 6 to be out in early 2025. Those anonymous sources say that "aren't sure if this will happen" and suggest that a fall 2025 launch is more plausible. Pushing the highly anticipated sequel into a 2026 release is being tossed around as an "emergency" plan if necessary.

Rockstar Games is one of several large development studios that have worked hard over the years to lessen or outright eliminate development crunch. An additional report from Aftermath says that these production troubles have resulted in the rise of fears that crunch could return to Rockstar Games as Grand Theft Auto 6 development nears its end.

Grand Theft Auto 6 is currently slated for a 2025 release from Rockstar Games. It is in development only for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. If a delay of the game were to happen, we may not officially hear about it until much, much closer to that planned release window. Rockstar Games notoriously waits until the last minute to announce release delays.