GTA 6 isn’t on PC at launch because it’s ‘always better to start with the constraints’, suggests former Rockstar producer

The lack of a Grand Theft Auto 6 PC port at launch is a sore spot for those of us faithful to the ol’ mouse and keyboard. Sure, it’s not new for Rockstar to prioritise console over PC (it’s got a marketing deal with Sony, after all), especially with new game launches, but I thought we were beyond that. But we’ve got Phantom Vice Auto to look forward to on November 19 instead, and that’s probably just as good, right?

So, why is Rockstar passing on a simultaneous PC launch for its games, including the upcoming GTA 6? According to former Rockstar producer John Ricchio in an interview with Reece ‘Kiwi Talkz’ Reilly on YouTube, it’s not because the studio doesn’t “care about PC”.

Ricchio describes a time when games were typically made for PC first, focusing on the strongest hardware, and then downsized for consoles before launch. Naturally, this led to some shoddy console ports cramming optimisation for weaker hardware at the last minute.

“So you’re much better off starting with the constraints,” Ricchio explains. “Shrinking is a lot harder than extending” to more powerful hardware. “Oh, we’ve got extra room. Cool. We can de-optimise some things or make them more shiny.”

Ricchio then punched us in the gut, noting that back when the first Red Dead Redemption was in the lab, they had a PC port working “very early” in development. Those who patiently waited will know that the PC version came in 2024, more than 14 years later. And you can blame GTA 5.

According to Ricchio, getting PC versions ready is more about development priorities. “It’s not that we don’t care about PC. It was just ‘is it worth spending time getting a PC port going versus working on GTA 5?’ … It’s never any specific, anti any platform.” So, he adds, “If you’re working on that, you’re not working on something else usually … There has to be enough of a business reason to do some of those ports, or the lift has to be so light that it’ll be super easy to do. And it’s rarely super light.”

It still feels like Rockstar is having its cake and eating it too, though. Ricchio points out that in the past, there were cases of “legitimate hardware limitations” when developing for console compared to PC. That power gap is “definitely closer” now.

While I’ll likely be taking the hit and playing GTA 6 on console (then playing it again when the PC version eventually arrives), it turns out you lot are actually quite patient—39% of our readers are more than happy to wait. Patience is a virtue, but Rockstar knows what it’s doing.