› Rockstar Games is the studio behind GTA 6, but its story begins a decade before the Rockstar name existed, in Dundee, Scotland.
› That is where DMA Design came up with a top-down car theft game in the 1990s.
› Today, Rockstar employs 4,711 people across more than a dozen offices, and GTA 6 is its first new mainline series release in 13 years.Here are the key facts about the studio: where it came from, who runs it, the games that defined it, and why GTA 6 took so long to build.Jason and Lucia, the protagonists of GTA 6, on official Rockstar Games artworkRockstar Games at a GlanceFounded: December 1998, New York CityFounders: Sam Houser, Dan Houser, Terry Donovan, Jamie King, and Gary ForemanParent company: Take-Two InteractiveHead: Sam Houser, PresidentHeadcount: 4,711 people in 2026, up from 2,441 in 2018Proprietary engine: RAGE (Rockstar Advanced Game Engine)Best-selling game: GTA V, over 220 million copies soldFrom DMA Design to Rockstar NorthThe original Grand Theft Auto from 1997 was created by Scottish studio DMA Design, previously best known for Lemmings.
› The game featured a top-down perspective, simple graphics, and immediate controversy.