- A former Rockstar veteran says Sony and Microsoft can’t rival Rockstar because they don’t care about making games.
- He argues these publishers focus on making money, so they fire and rehire developers all the time.
- Meanwhile, Rockstar retained staff over decades and preserved institutional knowledge.
Rockstar Games has become a colossal presence in the gaming scene by launching consistent, high-quality titles across its many IPs over the decades. The studio’s magnum opus GTA series is so far ahead that no other studio is even trying to match it anymore.
A former GTA 6 developer explains that Sony and Microsoft can’t compete with Rockstar simply because they don’t care about making games or gamers. The immediate priority of these publishers is to make as much money as possible.
Why it matters: The quality of many Western AAA studios has declined because they chase trends, layoffs, and other money-driven options instead of prioritizing quality and institutional knowledge. All this has made Rockstar a valuable lesson for the rest of the industry.
David O’Reilly, an ex-Rockstar veteran environmental artist of 12 years, argues that Rockstar’s secret sauce is to avoid the ‘fire and rehire’ cycle, where these big publishers lay off developers to cut costs and later hire again when production demand calls for it.
Sony, Microsoft, all these big publishers, […] they’re focused on the money.[…] they don’t give a crap about games. Make no mistake, they do not care about making game products.
-Rockstar Veteran, David O’Reilly.
Rockstar has focused on keeping its ‘knowledge bank’ intact for the last 27 years, ensuring its veteran staff remains to serve as a major competitive advantage.
It’s pretty simple really: Rockstar has kept nearly all of its institutional knowledge over the past 27 years.
There is little to no evidence that these layoffs have benefited either Sony or Microsoft. In fact, the opposite can be argued, as many giant Xbox and PlayStation franchises have declined after crucial veteran staff left over the years.
However, David adds that Take-Two also prioritizes money, but it has left Rockstar alone with creative freedom. The studio is Take-Two’s ‘golden goose,’ so it avoids interfering with its winning formula.
Although Rockstar’s insane budget and resources have also helped its GTA and other franchises become a behemoth over the years.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devotedly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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