A former Rockstar veteran, Obbe Vermeij, has weighed in on the swirling rumors that a re-release of Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA 4) might be on the horizon for the latest generation of consoles. Vermeij, who served as a technical director at Rockstar from 1995 to 2009 and contributed to GTA 4, stated that the game "should be remastered." He emphasized its quality and pointed to recent successful remasters like The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered as a potential model.
The buzz around a GTA 4 re-release began with a leak from Tez2, a well-known source within the GTA community for sharing Rockstar information. Tez2 hinted that a modern port of GTA 4 could be released this year, suggesting that this project might be why Rockstar recently shut down a GTA 5 Liberty City mod. However, it's crucial to note that Rockstar has not officially announced any plans for a GTA 4 re-release. Given their current focus on developing Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6), a GTA 4 remaster would be unexpected.
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Vermeij expressed his personal interest in seeing an updated version of GTA 4, praising its protagonist, Niko, as "the best protagonist in any GTA game." He speculated that such a remaster could involve porting GTA 4 to the latest version of the Rage engine, which Rockstar uses for its games.
It's important to reiterate that Rockstar has given no official indication of planning to remaster GTA 4. The company's primary focus remains on the highly anticipated GTA 6, set for a fall 2025 release. Undertaking a GTA 4 remaster alongside such a major project might be beyond Rockstar's current scope, even with their vast resources.
Rockstar could potentially delegate the remaster to an external studio, similar to how they handled the Red Dead Redemption port. However, releasing a GTA 4 remaster in 2025, the same year as GTA 6, would likely split the audience's attention away from the main event.
Speculation among GTA fans also includes the possibility of Liberty City, the setting for GTA 4 and GTA: Chinatown Wars, appearing in GTA 6 either at launch or as post-launch DLC. Liberty City is Rockstar's version of New York City, while GTA 6 is set in the fictional state of Leonida (Florida), which includes Vice City, mirroring Miami.
While we await more news, there's plenty more to explore about GTA 6, including detailed insights, 70 new screenshots, and expert analysis on its performance on the PS5 Pro.
