GTA 6 was once on track to be Rockstar’s darkest and most emotionally intense game yet.
Per French writer Fravilys, Dan Houser and the team had pitched a heavy crime story about three figures: a strict cop in Vice City, his drug-addicted son, and a brutal lieutenant of a Colombian drug lord.
This setup was meant to explore personal downfall, family loyalty, and systemic corruption in a city drowning in crime. What really grounded the story was the cop’s slide into crime, all because he was desperate to protect his son.
But according to multiple reports, that version of the game was deemed "too dark" by Take-Two, and the entire script was shelved in 2016.
Why Did Rockstar Change The GTA 6 Story?
The next phase involved a chaotic overhaul switching to two main characters, a revenge-driven female cop infiltrating Vice City's underworld and a manic drug runner loosely modeled after GTA 5’s Trevor.
That iteration survived about 18 months of development but was ultimately abandoned in mid-2018. The final pre-approval draft added a recently released ex-soldier trying to make his way in crime.
That one barely made it a year before it was thrown out as well. After three rejections in a row, Dan Houser reportedly stepped away from the project in early 2019 and formally left Rockstar the following year.
Some say the constant pushback from higher-ups on creative decisions was the final straw.
How Did GTA 6’s Final Version Come Together?
In the end, Rockstar picked the story that GTA 6 has—a team of two: Jason, once in the military, and Lucia, a Latina ex-con.
This version’s development officially started in 2020, but it wasn’t smooth sailing.
The pandemic threw Rockstar’s global teams off track, remote work slowed productivity, and security breaches like the notorious 2022 leak of over 90 gameplay clips added more problems.
In 2025, Rockstar moved the release date to May 2026, finally confirming fans’ suspicions that development hit rough patches.
Could the Original GTA 6 Have Been a Masterpiece?
Cutting the “too dark” draft could’ve buried a masterpiece, since its original plot promised a level of emotional weight and tragedy most crime games don’t touch.
The potential drawback was that the three protagonists would clutter the plot, and the leaner, tighter story about a wild romantic duo suits GTA’s tone more.
Still, the fact that such a story was even on the table has sparked major “what if” debates. It’s not hard to imagine that if Rockstar had stuck with the original pitch, we might’ve ended up with a game that rivaled not just the best of GTA but the best stories in gaming.
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