GTA 6’s original Project Americas map spanned North and South America

Overview

Reported GTA 6 was originally planned to cover large portions of North and South America before Rockstar narrowed the project to Miami and its surrounding areas. The early concept was known internally as Project Americas, according to a Bloomberg interview with Rockstar developers reported by Eurogamer and Insider Gaming on October 14, 2026.

Reported Rockstar North co-studio head Rob Nelson traveled to Miami with other developers in 2015 for an early research trip, Bloomberg reported. At that stage, Rockstar was still pursuing a much larger geographical concept. The studio eventually abandoned that scope as development priorities changed, leaving the Florida-inspired setting that became Leonida.

Key facts

• Reported Original codename: GTA 6 began development under the name Project Americas, according to Bloomberg’s interviews with Rockstar staff.
• Reported Larger map: The original concept included extensive areas of both North and South America, rather than the single-state setting associated with the finished game.
• Reported 2015 research: Rob Nelson and a group of Rockstar developers visited Miami in 2015 to research the setting.
• Reported Development change: Rockstar pushed GTA 6 back by several years as Red Dead Redemption 2 required more resources.
• Reported Story established: By 2019, Rockstar had developed the basic structure of GTA 6 and the central idea of Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos pursuing a criminal life together.
• Reported Release schedule: Eurogamer reports that GTA 6 is scheduled for November 19, 2026, on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

What Rockstar originally planned for Project Americas

Reported Eurogamer reports that Bloomberg’s interviews traced GTA 6 back to an early plan involving substantial territory across two continents. The report does not identify specific South American countries, cities or playable locations that Rockstar considered. Insider Gaming likewise describes a project that would have been geographically much larger than the version now approaching release.

Reported The Miami research trip in 2015 shows that the city was already part of Rockstar’s planning while Project Americas was still taking shape. Bloomberg’s account places that work before the studio settled on its smaller geographical focus. Neither Eurogamer nor Insider Gaming provides a precise date for the decision to abandon the continental map.

Our read The distinction matters because Project Americas was a development concept, not a map Rockstar publicly promised to players. The reports do not establish that a complete North and South America map was ever built, or that finished locations were removed from the release version.

Why GTA 6 became a smaller project

Reported According to Eurogamer’s account of Bloomberg’s reporting, Rockstar initially intended to develop GTA 6 alongside Red Dead Redemption 2. The western grew more demanding, and the studio redirected its attention and resources toward finishing it. GTA 6 consequently slipped several years behind its early development plans.

Reported Rockstar underwent major organizational changes after Red Dead Redemption 2. Eurogamer reports that the company’s workforce grew from 2,441 to 4,711 employees across 12 offices. Dan Houser’s departure also brought changes to development leadership, with Nelson, Aaron Garbut and Phil Hooker taking senior roles.

Reported By 2019, the project had its basic narrative structure, including Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos as a criminal couple, Eurogamer reports. The individual gameplay systems and finer details took longer to develop. Nelson also described the difficulty of keeping the team working together during the Covid-19 pandemic, when employees had to work remotely.

What the smaller map means for players

Our read The original Project Americas plan should not be confused with the locations players can expect on November 19. Rockstar’s published setting centers on Vice City and the wider state of Leonida, including Grassrivers and Lake Leonida. Those are the relevant locations for the launch version, rather than the abandoned continental concept.

Reported Insider Gaming describes Leonida as Rockstar’s largest map to date despite the reduction in scope. The report does not provide measurements comparing the original Project Americas proposal with the finished map. It also gives no indication that the earlier continental plan will return as post-launch content.

Our read We think the biggest unanswered question is how far Project Americas progressed before Rockstar changed direction. A research trip and an ambitious geographical plan do not tell us how much playable territory existed. Without development maps or a fuller explanation from Rockstar, there is no sound basis for naming cut cities or calculating how much land was lost.

Development problems continued after the map change

Reported Eurogamer reports that Bloomberg also examined Rockstar’s efforts to change working conditions after Red Dead Redemption 2. Head of publishing Jennifer Kolbe acknowledged the studio’s previous problems with excessive overtime and said its approach to GTA 6 had improved, although she did not claim every employee had avoided crunch. Bloomberg reportedly interviewed dozens of employees, most of whom responded positively to the changes.

Reported The interview also addressed the unauthorized release of unfinished GTA 6 footage in 2022. Rockstar developer Aaron Garbut described the experience as emotionally invasive because early work never intended for public viewing had been exposed. Separately, Eurogamer reports that Rockstar is facing an employment tribunal in Scotland involving 34 dismissed employees, with the company alleging gross misconduct and the former employees alleging union-busting.

Reported Rockstar also had to revise GTA 6’s release schedule. Eurogamer recounts how the original 2025 target became May 2026, before another delay moved the game to November 19. Kolbe recalled telling Take-Two chief executive Strauss Zelnick that the studio needed more time and said he accepted the reasoning after they discussed the development problems.

Context

Reported Shacknews previously reported that Rockstar developers began preliminary work on a modern Vice City in 2015, with the project’s fuller vision taking shape around 2019. That earlier account of Bloomberg’s investigation established the development timeline, while the October 14 reporting adds the specific Project Americas codename and the original two-continent scope.

Our read The development history arrives five weeks before GTA 6’s November 19 release date. Players will follow Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos through Leonida rather than the continental setting once considered. Rockstar has not published a complete official map, so the precise boundaries of the launch world are still not established by the material covered here.

Our read

Our read Our read is that Project Americas explains why GTA 6’s early development stretched back so far, but it does not prove Rockstar cut a finished continent-sized game. The studio was researching Miami in 2015 while Red Dead Redemption 2 still demanded major resources, and its central Jason and Lucia concept was in place by 2019. For players waiting until November 19, the useful distinction is between a discarded development ambition and the Leonida map Rockstar actually intends to ship.

Questions

What was Project Americas in GTA 6?

Reported Project Americas was GTA 6’s original development codename. According to Bloomberg’s interviews as reported by Eurogamer and Insider Gaming, the early plan covered large areas of North and South America before Rockstar reduced the geographical scope.

Why did Rockstar abandon the original GTA 6 map?

Reported Eurogamer reports that Rockstar reduced the game’s scope as its development priorities changed. Red Dead Redemption 2 required increasing resources, which pushed GTA 6 back several years.

Will GTA 6 include South America at launch?

Our read The reports provide no evidence that the original South American areas survived into the launch version. Rockstar’s published setting is Leonida, and no South American playable region has been established by the sources available here.

When did GTA 6 development begin?

Reported Bloomberg’s reporting places Rockstar’s early Miami research in 2015. By 2019, the studio had developed the basic game structure and the central Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos story, according to Eurogamer.