Rockstar working on ‘Project ROME’ which aims to turn GTA 6 into the ‘next big metaverse’

TL;DR: Grand Theft Auto 6 is set to become a major metaverse platform with Rockstar’s Project ROME, replacing FiveM. The game will feature custom experiences by top creators and regular updates with new missions and cities.

Grand Theft Auto 6 is going to be far more than just a video game, with developer Rockstar working on Project ROME (Rockstar Online Modding Engine) that will see GTA 6 turned into the next big metaverse.

Rockstar working on 'Project ROME' which aims to turn GTA 6 into the 'next big metaverse' 23

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In a post on X by “GTA 6 Countdown” that links to multiple reports from the last couple of months, former FiveM staffers claim that Project ROME has been internally in development before the company acquired Cfx in 2023, replacing FiveM inside of GTA 5. Not just that, but Rockstar is reportedly in contact with some of the biggest Roblox and Fortnite content creators about creating custom experiences inside of GTA 6.

The post adds articles that cover some of the topics, with a question about FiveM being dead, and “long live ROME” to which the post explains: “Last year, GTA Focal spoke with ex-FiveM staffers who claimed a FiveM killer was being made internally at Rockstar before the company bought Cfx.re. Since then, the project has reportedly been brought back from the dead and is called ROME (Rockstar Online Modding Engine). In the summer of 2024, Rockstar had put a new public_mission_creator file inside of a GTA Online update”.

In a post from Digiday, a report said “Rockstar Games is gearing up to make Grand Theft Auto VI the next big metaverse platform. Rockstar Games has been in discussions with top Roblox and Fortnite creators, as well as dedicated GTA content creators, about the potential to create custom experiences inside of the upcoming game, according to three industry insiders with knowledge of these meetings, who requested anonymity in order to protect business relationships. These experiences would allow creators to modify the game’s environment and assets to bring their own intellectual property — and potentially their brand sponsors — into GTA’s virtual sandbox”.

BNN Bloomberg reported that “Rockstar’s plan is now to continually update the game over time, adding new missions and cities on a regular basis, which the leadership hopes will lead to less crunch during the game’s final months. Still, the game’s world remains large, with more interior locations than previous Grand Theft Auto games, impacting the timeline”.