Ben Hinchliffe was part of Rockstar Games for over a decade, most recently working on Grand Theft Auto 6 until 2021.
In the absence of official Grand Theft Auto news from Rockstar Games, several ex-developers from the studio and also insiders have stepped up to the plate, revealing bits of interesting information.
Like, for example, certain things about Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas straight from one of the people behind arguably the franchise's most popular games, as well as Rockstar previously considering delaying the official Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer announcement because of a particularly popular insider.
With only a year to go before its release, another former Rockstar stalwart is now revealing good news about GTA 6.
Ben Hinchliffe, who is currently working for Just Add Water, recently sat down for an online interview with GTA VI O'clock where he talked about the projects he had worked on while part of Rockstar. After talking about LA Noire and Grand Theft Auto 5, Hinchliffe shared his thoughts about the current state of things over at Rockstar, and he's definitely good positive things to say.
https://youtu.be/R5mzJsGhmr4?t=1441
When asked about what the GTA 6 development team would be working on right now ahead of the game's launch next year, Hinchliffe mentioned that the studio is focused on "bug fixing" and "nailing stuff down", mentioning how important it is for the developers to make sure that the game is working right, especially in a game like GTA 6 where players like to "mess around" and "do things differently."
In the same interview, Hinchliffe revealed that he's looking forward to how much the project has evolved since he left in 2021 and how the studio has "raised the bar" again with GTA 6.
Until we get an official confirmation with a final release date, the concerns about a GTA 6 delay will remain. However, for all intents and purposes, GTA 6 is penciled in for next fall. Considering Rockstar doesn't do November releases, we could all potentially already be playing GTA 6 at this point next year.
For what it's worth, Rockstar's latest job listings do confirm that it might ramp up marketing efforts for GTA 6 sooner rather than later.
By hiring a Screenshot Capture Artist and a Community Manager while, at the same time, also taking down supposedly "fake" leaks about the game, Rockstar and Take-Two Interactive are signaling that official news is close.
With Take-Two's next earnings call just right around the corner, it's worth keeping a close eye on whatever Strauss Zelnick has to say next week.
For now, GTA fans can enjoy Grand Theft Auto Online, which is about to receive its next weekly update.
