Rockstar Games Needs to Change Its Strategy After GTA 6

Rockstar Games is in need of a change in strategy after GTA 6. It’s no secret that Rockstar Games has a reputation and process unlikely really anyone else in the industry. Rockstar has made so many highly successful games, the last two of which are in the top 10 best-selling games of all-time, that people will flock to buy a game that has the studio’s logo on it. That much cache has also given Rockstar the ability to take as much time as it needs on a project. Most studios need to release a few games a generation to keep cooking, but Rockstar only released one brand new title last generation and will likely do the same this generation.

This is largely thanks to the fact that GTA 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2 continue to sell heaps of copies which then push players into the successful online modes. Rockstar has also released occasional remasters and ports of older games such as Red Dead Redemption to generate a bit of extra revenue as well. Of course, all of this allows Rockstar Games the opportunity to make ambitious, polished games that no one else is capable of creating because no one has the time or money that they have. However, I think there’s still a way to deliver high quality products without taking so long.

Why Rockstar Should Change Its Strategy

In the span of 13 years, Rockstar will have released three brand new games: GTA 5, Red Dead Redemption 2, and GTA 6. My fear is that Rockstar will continue chasing the biggest games possible, leading to extensive gaps between releases. They have to have the most expansive and detailed open worlds, the longest stories, and the most in-depth online experiences. I do truly love all of that, but Rockstar has over 2,000 employees spread across nearly a dozen studios around the world.

A decade and a half ago, Rockstar used these different teams to work on multiple games at once. Rockstar North did Grand Theft Auto, Rockstar San Diego did Red Dead Redemption, and teams like Rockstar Vancouver worked on titles like Bully. We got a wide variety of games that had different scopes. Some were massive and pushing boundaries while others were a bit smaller in scale, but still possessed that fine level of detail and intelligence we all seek from Rockstar.

It’s time to return to that after GTA 6. We don’t need GTA 7 or Red Dead Redemption 3 right away. Those will come in due time, I am sure. Those franchises are some of my favorites, but they can rest for a while. However, I would love to see all of the Rockstar studios split back up again and work on a few other smaller games, relative to a GTA-sized project. It would be great to see 2 – 3 new Rockstar games released during the PS6 generation and they are a return to either something older or the debut of something brand new.

What Rockstar Should Make After GTA 6

This article was largely prompted by Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser revealing why Bully 2 never happened. The creative noted that the studio had bandwidth issues as they had so many projects to do, but not enough time or resources to do everything. As a result, Bully 2 got put on the back burner. My wish is to see Bully 2 happen. It’s a series that lends itself to a smaller scale and doesn’t require a massive, gargantuan open-world that can be explored by sports car or a fighter jet. It’s meant to be explored on foot, skateboard, or bicycle.

That allows the team to focus more on the nuances of the world and packing it with plenty to see and do in a more contained area, such as a small town and school campus. A lot of features seen in Red Dead Redemption 2 reportedly began as concepts for Bully 2, so it would make sense for them to be iterated upon for this new game.

While one team (or a small group of studios, if necessary) makes Bully 2, another group could go revive Agent. For those that don’t know, Agent was a PS3-exclusive spy game developed by Rockstar. It never actually saw the light of day, but it was sort of the studio’s take on James Bond. It was reported that it would have explorable hub worlds, but not a big open world. This feels like another great fit for a mid-sized Rockstar game, but it also is completely different from anything they’ve done before so it would be super refreshing.

Other potential options for mid-sized games could be Max Payne 4 or something entirely new, made from scratch. It feels like it’s time for Rockstar Games to shake things up a bit. It would be great to see the developers let their creative juices flow on something that isn’t Grand Theft Auto or Red Dead for a few years before ultimately bringing them back together for a game like GTA 7 when the time is right. Will that happen? Only time will tell.

What do you want to see Rockstar do after GTA 6? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

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