GTA: Tokyo Was Almost Developed by Japanese Studio, Former Rockstar Dev Reveals

A former Rockstar Games technical director has confirmed that Grand Theft Auto: Tokyo was once in early development discussions, along with several other international locations for the franchise.

Obbe Vermeij, who served as technical director at Rockstar North and worked on some of the series' most beloved titles, including GTA 3, Vice City, and San Andreas, recently sat down with GamesHub to discuss the studio's creative process during those formative years.

According to Vermeij, the team explored ambitious ideas for games set in cities far beyond American borders, with locations like Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, and Istanbul all being thrown around in brainstorming sessions. But it was Tokyo that came surprisingly close to actually happening.

The plan involved partnering with another studio based in Japan that would take Rockstar's existing game code and develop a standalone project under the working title GTA: Tokyo. This would have marked a massive shift for the franchise, which has primarily stuck to reimagined versions of American cities throughout its history. However, despite the advanced discussions, the project ultimately never materialized.

"We had ideas about GTA games in Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, and Istanbul. Tokyo almost actually happened," Vermeij explained. "Another studio in Japan were going to do it, take our code and do GTA: Tokyo. But then that didn't happen in the end."

So why did Rockstar pull back from these international experiments? The answer comes down to risk management and cultural recognition. "People love having these wild ideas, but then when you've got billions of dollars riding on it, it's too easy to go 'let's do what we know again', and also America is basically the epicenter of Western culture, so everybody knows the cities, even people who haven't been there. They have a mental image of the cities," Vermeij said.

Former Rockstar co-founder and GTA lead writer Dan Houser echoed this sentiment in previous statements, noting that the series required specific elements that are inherently American. "You needed guns, you needed these larger-than-life characters. It just felt like the game was so much about America, possibly from an outsider's perspective, but that was so much about what the thing was that it wouldn't have really worked in the same way elsewhere," Houser explained. He also mentioned that "it would be really hard to make it work in London or anywhere else" for GTA given how much "Americana inherent in the IP."

Vermeij remains skeptical about future international settings as well, particularly as development cycles have stretched to over a decade between mainline releases. "I think it's unlikely it's going to be in Bogota next time, especially since there's just more and more money involved as the project gets bigger. It doesn't make sense to set it in some leftfield location for novelty. GTA: Toronto? It just wouldn't work," he stated.

"They'll revisit New York again. They'll go back to LA or maybe Las Vegas. I'm afraid we're stuck in this loop of about five American cities. Let's just get used to it."

This revelation comes as Rockstar prepares for the highly anticipated launch of Grand Theft Auto 6, which returns players to Vice City, the studio's fictionalized version of Miami set in the modern-day state of Leonida. The game was delayed earlier this year and is now scheduled to release on November 19, 2026. GTA 6 will feature dual protagonists Lucia Caminos and Jason Duval, marking the first time the series has included a playable female lead character.