Summary

  • A former Rockstar developer has shed more light on the cancelled GTA 5 DLC that would have focussed on Trevor.
  • Joseph Rubino says it was scrapped because GTA Online was too much of a "cash cow".
  • He adds that it was about "halfway through" development before it was cancelled.

Grand Theft Auto 5 would have gotten DLC centred around Trevor if it wasn't for GTA Online's success. That is at least according to a former developer, who says that GTA Online was too much of a "cash cow" for Rockstar to consider working on anything else for GTA 5.

As reported by VGC, this was just revealed by Joseph Rubino, who was a senior camera artist at Rockstar in the 2010s. In an interview with YouTuber SanInPlay, Rubino says that he worked on the rumoured Trevor DLC for GTA 5, backing up claims from other sources who have previously reported that the DLC was in the works at some point during GTA 5's ongoing development.

Rockstar Dev Says Trevor DLC For GTA 5 Was Real

In the interview, Rubino details his workload during this period at Rockstar, when Red Dead Redemption 2 was still in the early stages of development.

"We split our teams into two," says Rubino. "I stayed on GTA Online, and then this DLC, which Steven Ogg [Trevor Philips's actor] was a very important part of. And then some of the team overlapped and went on to RDR2 early on."

He goes on to say that this DLC was scrapped "probably about halfway through" its development, and he wasn't happy with the decision.

I think looking back now, I would say that you could probably do both.

"When that [DLC] got shelved, we spent so much money," says Rubino. "A lot of that stuff though did end up making it, I believe, into later iterations of GTA Online. It's not like they wasted it. It was really really good.

"But what happened was, when GTA [Online] came out, it was so much of a cash cow, and people were loving it so much, that it was hard to make an argument that a standalone DLC would out-compete that," he continues. "I think looking back now, I would say that you could probably do both. But that was a business decision that they made."

Rubino says that he pushed back against the decision, but it seems like management had made up its mind. "I was like, 'What the f**k guys? This s**t is awesome. Let's keep going. Let's finish this s**t'."

Related

The Rockstar Leak Highlights The All-Consuming Nature Of Live Games

Bully 2, Agent, and single-player DLC for GTA 5 all seem to have been sacrificed for GTA Online.

Posts

Steven Ogg himself has previously commented on this cancelled DLC, confirming that he had recorded new lines before it was scrapped. This lines up with Rubino's account since he worked in the cinematics department.

Since then, it's been a long wait for more single-player GTA content. We're still waiting on GTA 6, which is set to launch next fall.

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Grand Theft Auto Online

Open-World Action Systems Released October 1, 2013 ESRB M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol Developer(s) Rockstar North Publisher(s) Rockstar Games Engine Rockstar Advanced Game Engine Multiplayer Online Multiplayer Cross-Platform Play n/a Cross Save n/a
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Bringing open-world San Andreas to the online space, Grand Theft Auto Online allows you to do whatever it takes to rise to the top of the criminal ladder. You can complete missions, build businesses, and join crews, all while crafting your perfect character.

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