Rockstar India QA Worker Claims GTA 6 Final Stretch Has Been Rough
The hype around Grand Theft Auto 6 is massive, but a new employee review has put the spotlight back on one of gaming’s ugliest recurring issues: crunch.
According to Destructoid, a recent two-star Glassdoor review from a quality assurance analyst at Rockstar India claims that working conditions at the Bengaluru studio have become especially intense in the lead-up to Rockstar’s next major release. The review was posted on May 1 and appears to refer to GTA 6, though the employee did not directly name the game.
The analyst said the schedule had become “hectic” over the past month, claiming staff were expected to work overtime without extra pay. They also alleged that some colleagues had to continue working until around 3am even after finishing their normal shifts. Another major complaint: tasks that would usually need five to six months were allegedly being compressed into a two-to-three-month window.
That is a serious claim, especially because QA is one of the most pressure-heavy parts of any AAA game’s final stretch. This is the stage where testers are hunting bugs, checking builds, verifying fixes, and making sure a huge open world does not collapse the moment millions of players start causing chaos. For a game as big as GTA 6, that workload is no joke.
There were some positives mentioned in the review. The employee reportedly said the free food was good and acknowledged the excitement of working on what is likely the most anticipated entertainment release in the world. But the overall message was still worrying, with the analyst saying the recent weeks had affected their mental health and asking for more leniency.
For Malaysian and SEA fans, this hits a bit differently. GTA 6 is not just another Western AAA launch we casually watch from far away. It is going to dominate local gaming circles, TikTok edits, PlayStation groups, kedai game preorder chats, and probably every mamak gaming debate the moment it drops. But while players here are counting down to release day, it is worth remembering that massive games are built by real people across global studios — including teams in Asia.
Rockstar India’s involvement also matters because many SEA players understand how common overtime culture can be in the region. When a huge international project leans on Asian development support, the conversation should not only be about hype trailers and console performance. It should also include whether the people polishing the game are being treated fairly.
GTA 6 is currently scheduled for Nov. 19, after previous delays. Rockstar has also faced crunch-related criticism in the past, and last year’s delay arrived around the same period as reported layoffs. With development costs reportedly climbing beyond $2 billion, the pressure around the project is clearly enormous.
Still, pressure does not excuse burnout. Everyone wants GTA 6 to be polished, stable, and worth the wait. But if the final months are being powered by exhausted QA staff pulling unpaid late nights, that is not something fans should just shrug off.
We can be excited for GTA 6 and still expect better from the biggest studios in gaming. Both things can be true, bro.
Source: Destructoid
