Rockstar Games is having devs work in the office again as GTA 6 nears the end of its development and they aren’t happy about it. Now that the devs have to work standard five-day weeks again, they’re worried that Rockstar is planning to implement “crunch” work practices.
A report from VGC collects several statements from employees who are worried that Rockstar games are going to start crunching them again once they return to the office. Many employees were able to balance their lives better when working from home, but that could end up changing with this mandate.
“Working from home has been a lifeline for many of us at Rockstar, allowing us to balance care responsibilities, manage disabilities, and relocate as we need,” an anonymous employee told VGC. “Now, Rockstar is snatching away that lifeline without a second thought for the workers who’ll be impacted most.”
This mandate from Rockstar Games stems from the numerous GTA 6 leaks that have hit the web, making the company extremely paranoid about its development. When the game’s first trailer was leaked one day ahead of its release, the devs were understandably furious about it. Even before that, an old build for the game was leaked before this installment was even announced, which probably started this paranoia.
Rockstar Games is no stranger to crunch, as the company is always trying to release the highest quality titles, which is why they take so much time. It was widely reported that the company crunched its employees during the development of Red Dead Redemption 2. Considering how hectic that environment was, it’s easy to see why the developers are worried about returning to offices.
Now that devs have to come back to offices, it will be interesting to see if reports of GTA 6’s development ever come out. Since crunch culture is constantly getting criticized, Rockstar will want to do something different this time to ensure their employees are happy.
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GTA 6 is coming to PS5 and Xbox Series sometime in 2025, with no PC release at the time of writing.