GTA VI Development Timeline: From Project Americas to Final Stages

Rockstar began early work on GTA VI in 2015 under the codename Project Americas, originally planned to span North and South America. Development was largely paused while the studio focused on Red Dead Redemption 2, which launched in October 2018. By late 2019, Rockstar had settled on the story of criminal duo Jason Duvall and Lucia Caminos in Vice City.

Leadership changed after Dan Houser's departure, with Rob Nelson, Aaron Garbut, and Phil Hooker taking over. The COVID-19 pandemic slowed progress in 2020–2021, but by 2022 the project had taken shape and entered its later production stages.