Former Rockstar Games Developer Explains Why GTA 6 Maker Launches Games on PC After Consoles

Grand Theft Auto 6 is coming to PS5 and Xbox Series S/X later this year, but developer Rockstar Games has not confirmed a PC version of the game yet. The studio usually puts its games first on consoles before porting them to PC later, but a former Rockstar developer has shared insight on why the GTA 6 maker prioritises console releases, explaining that it is easier to scale up a game from its console version to a PC release.

In a recent interview with YouTuber KiwiTalkz former Rockstar Games producer John Ricchio discussed Rockstar Games' development practices, Grand Theft Auto 6, Red Dead Redemption, among other topics. According to Ricchio, developers are “much better off” starting with the constraints of developing a game on consoles before scaling up for the PC version.

“It's always better to start with the constraints and then extend," Ricchio said (via IGN). “Because shrinking is a lot harder than extending. It's way harder to make your game performant than it is to just be like ‘Oh, we've got extra room? Cool, we can deoptimize some things or make things more shiny.'”

Ricchio, who worked as a producer on Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto 5, said that it wasn't like Rockstar didn't care about PC, rather a question of balancing resources. “Is it worth spending time getting a PC port going versus working on GTA 5,” he said referencing Red Dead Redemption.

According to the former Rockstar staffer, the studio had a PC build of Red Dead Redemption in the works “very early.” But it seems Rockstar pivoted to working on GTA 5. A PC version of Red Dead Redemption was released in 2024, over a decade after the game was launched on PS3 and Xbox 360.

GTA 6 will release on November 19, 2026
Photo Credit: Rockstar Games

GTA 6 PC Version

However, Rockstar has since been much quicker to release PC versions of its games after their initial launches on consoles. GTA 5, for instance, released on PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2013 before making its way to PC in 2015. Red Dead Redemption 2 launched on PS4 and Xbox One in 2018 and then released on PC a year later in 2019.

While Rockstar has not confirmed its PC plans for Grand Theft Auto 6, the game is expected to get a PC port sometime next year after it launches on PS5 and Xbox Series S/X on November 19, 2026. In May, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said that console players were the "core audience" for GTA 6. 

In the interview this week, Richhio said releasing a game on a different platform also required business considerations and decisions needed to be made on a per game basis, especially since consoles are now much closer to PC in terms of hardware capability.

“..as time has gone on, I feel like the consoles are definitely closer (to PC), so it doesn't quite feel as bad, but it just becomes about, ‘If you're working on that, you're not working on something else,' usually. And so, if you're spending money on that, you're not spending money on something else. And so that's where the business case has to be there. There has to be enough of a business reason to do some of those ports,” he said.

Releasing a game first on consoles and then on PC also allows Rockstar to generate additional revenue from a second launch cycle. The developer will release GTA 6 first on current-generation consoles, where the game is expected to be the biggest entertainment launch of all time and generate billions of dollars in revenue. Then, a PC port can launch later, possibly in 2027, and continue to generate revenue for Rockstar and Take-Two.

GTA 6 is currently available to pre-order on PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.