Grand Theft Auto 6 devs asked to return to the office full-time ‘for productivity and security reasons’

Rockstar Games has reportedly requested that employees return to the office full-time as it approaches the final stages of development on Grand Theft Auto 6.

According to Bloomberg, Rockstar head of publishing Jenn Kolbe told staff the company plans to end hybrid working for productivity and security reasons, saying it believes there are “tangible benefits” from in-person work.

In September 2022, hackers published an hour of Grand Theft Auto 6 development footage online, giving players their first look at the sequel to one of the best-selling games of all-time.

And last December, Rockstar chose to release the first Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer earlier than planned after it was leaked online.

“Making these changes now puts us in the best position to deliver the next Grand Theft Auto at the level of quality and polish we know it requires, along with a publishing roadmap that matches the scale and ambition of the game,” Kolbe told staff in an email.

While the industry switched to remote work in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic, some studios have started walking back that policy.

The first trailer for Grand Theft Auto 6 racked up over 90 million views in just 24 hours.

As well as a 2025 release date for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, it confirmed that the game will partly take place in Vice City – a fictional Miami – and star a pair of protagonists, one of whom, in a first for the series, is a woman.

The latest earnings guidance from Rockstar owner Take-Two indicated Grand Theft Auto 6 will be released after March 2025, analysts have claimed.