For years Grand Theft Auto followers have questioned whether or not Rockstar would possibly take the franchise out of its conventional America setting into cities in different nations. However based on one former developer, that’s by no means going to occur — and followers simply want to simply accept it.
In an interview with Gameshub, former Rockstar Video games technical director Obbe Vermeij, who labored on the firm from 1995 to 2009, stated there have been “concepts” about post-Liberty Metropolis, San Andreas, and Vice Metropolis GTA video games set in Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, and Istanbul, but it surely was GTA: Tokyo that “nearly truly occurred.”
In keeping with Vermeij, who left Rockstar simply after ending GTA 4, one other studio in Japan was going to take Rockstar’s code and develop GTA: Tokyo (Vermeij didn’t say which studio). “However then that didn’t occur ultimately.”
Why? It seems like Rockstar got here to the conclusion that American cities are the pure and finest setting for GTA, and given it takes so lengthy to launch new video games within the collection, going worldwide is simply too huge of a threat.
“Folks love having these wild concepts however then whenever you’ve acquired billions of {dollars} driving on it it’s too straightforward to go let’s do what we all know once more, and in addition America is mainly the epicenter of Western tradition, so everyone is aware of the cities, even individuals who haven’t been there,” Vermeij stated. “They’ve a psychological picture of the cities.
“I believe it’s unlikely it’s going to be in Bogota subsequent time, particularly since there’s simply an increasing number of cash concerned because the venture will get larger. It doesn’t make sense to set it in some left-field location for novelty. GTA: Toronto? It simply wouldn’t work.”
GTA 6 is after all set to return to Vice Metropolis, the GTA collection’ fictionalized tackle Miami, Florida. However then what? Will Rockstar ever take GTA worldwide and set it throughout mainland Europe or in London?
“It’s simply not life like,” Vermeij countered. “I’d adore it, and if video games nonetheless took a yr to make then yeah positive, you may have slightly enjoyable, however you’re not going to get that when there’s a GTA each 12 years.
“You’re not going to set it in a brand new location. You don’t actually need to both as a result of the expertise adjustments a lot. No one goes to say that they’re not going to play GTA 6 as a result of they’ve already performed Vice Metropolis. That doesn’t make sense. It’s utterly completely different.
“They’ll revisit New York once more. They’ll return to LA or perhaps Las Vegas. I’m afraid we’re caught on this loop of about 5 American cities. Let’s simply get used to it.”
Vermeij’s feedback right here echo these of Rockstar co-founder and former boss Dan Houser, who just lately defined why the Grand Theft Auto collection gained’t go away america when it comes to its setting.
Talking on the Lex Fridman podcast, Houser stated that — GTA London aside — Grand Theft Auto remained firmly rooted in america as a result of it leans so closely on Americana.
“We made slightly factor in London 26 years in the past — GTA London — for the top-down for PS1. That was fairly cute and enjoyable, as the primary mission pack ever for PlayStation 1. I believe for a full GTA recreation, we all the time determined there was a lot Americana inherent within the IP, it will be actually arduous to make it work in London or wherever else.
“You realize, you wanted weapons, you wanted these larger-than-life characters. It simply felt like the sport was a lot about America, probably from an outsider’s perspective. However that was a lot about what the factor was that it would not actually have labored in the identical approach elsewhere.”
Certainly, such is GTA’s relationship with America, constructed up over the course of its many video video games, {that a} College of Tennessee historical past professor will educate a GTA school historical past class early in 2026. Professor Tore Olsson just lately informed IGN: “Video video games are nice at conjuring fictional worlds, however additionally they affect gamers’ desirous about real-world instances and locations. And simply as Pink Lifeless Redemption 2 has formed of us’ notion of the nineteenth-century American West or Ghost of Tsushima has knowledgeable their imaginative and prescient of feudal Japan, tens of millions of individuals across the globe think about modern America via the lens of the Grand Theft Auto franchise. Simply consider what number of GTA veterans have acknowledged landmarks in Los Angeles and New York because of their hours in Los Santos and Liberty Metropolis!”
Houser’s place on GTA is just like that of the creators of post-apocalyptic role-playing recreation collection Fallout, which has additionally remained in america. Final yr, Bethesda improvement chief Todd Howard dominated out leaving the U.S. behind for a future Fallout online game, saying he’s an enormous fan of the “Americana naivete” that informs a lot of Fallout’s tone.
Wesley is Director, Information at IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You’ll be able to attain Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].