Why GTA 6 Might Not Run at 60 FPS on Your Console

In the frenzied lead-up to what many laud as the most anticipated game of the generation, a few key technical questions linger among fans - and we've got another educated guess entering the conversation. A former Rockstar Games developer has shed light on why Grand Theft Auto 6 might be capped at 30 frames per second on current-generation consoles.

Obbe Vermeij, who served as a technical lead at Rockstar Games during the release of Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and Grand Theft Auto 4, recently took to social media to explain the technical challenges facing the upcoming blockbuster.

According to Vermeij, there's a potential trade-off between visual fidelity and performance. "At 30 fps you can render twice as many polygons compared to 60fps. For a competitive action game you'd always go for the high frame rate but for gta you might prefer the visual details."

Great attention to all the little nitty gritty details is one of the things Rockstar is famous for. The conversation started when a curious fan asked Vermeij directly about the difficulty of achieving 60 FPS on base consoles for GTA 6.

For a game that has already showcased unprecedented levels of detail in its first trailer and second trailer, from stunning locations to hyper-realistic characters, this trade-off becomes particularly significant. In a follow-up reply, Vermeij explained that GTA 6 "will likely be limited by both CPU and GPU."

This is a sentiment that other industry experts agree with, saying that even with the upgraded, beefier PS5 Pro, Rockstar will struggle making GTA 6 run at 60 FPS.

Previous reports from industry analysts and former Rockstar employees have suggested that Sony's more powerful flagship console might struggle to maintain 60 FPS with the game's ambitious scope and visual fidelity.

With that said, for an experience like Grand Theft Auto, where immersion and visual spectacle play crucial roles, the enhanced graphical details might be worth the smoother motion sacrifice. It's important to note that industry experts who've previously shared about this topic and Vermeij aren't working on GTA 6.

Given that Rockstar and Sony are reportedly working closely together to market and make GTA 6 run best on the PS5 Pro, it wouldn't surprise us if all these comments were proven wrong come May 26, 2026.

As development continues and the 2026 release date approaches, the frame rate debate should only intensify.

Whatever Rockstar decides, we can expect it to be carefully calculated to deliver the best possible GTA experience, even if that means sacrificing the smoothness that some players have come to expect from modern games.