Recently, former Rockstar producer John Ricchio participated in the KIWI TALKZ podcast. Over the years at the studio, the developer managed to participate in the creation of Red Dead Redemption, Max Payne 3, Grand Theft Auto V, and many other projects.
During the conversation, the topic of the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto VI was touched upon. He was asked if he would like to be part of Rockstar now, ahead of the launch of the new installment of the franchise.
During his answer, John mentioned the changing scale of GTA games — with each installment, it increased:
[...] every time they make a new GTA, it's just insanely bigger than before. I can't imagine how big GTA VI will be. It will probably be truly gigantic, or, if not gigantic, then certainly much more detailed.
John explained that this expectation was formed from Rockstar Games' experience. Grand Theft Auto V was "significantly larger" than the previously released GTA IV and Red Dead Redemption:
I think even [during the transition from GTA release to RDR release] they were increasing the size of the world. It's a lot of work, of course — you have to create a lot more, you have to take a lot more into account in terms of performance. In general, there are a lot of nuances associated with a huge world, but it really gives you the feeling that you are in a certain place, doesn't it? As if you really got into a huge space.
Laughing, John added: "I think I'm glad I'm not working on GTA VI":
Not that it wouldn't be cool to work with these people [...] but it's all very difficult. It's a difficult period in your career when you work so hard on something, reach the finish line, and then see how people are delighted with what you've done — it's just magic. It's an incredibly pleasant feeling.