This Is What Games Actually Look Like When They're In Development

By now, you’ll definitely have heard about the Grand Theft Auto VI leak. Just a few days ago, Rockstar Games was hit by a major cyber attack during which GTA VI development footage was obtained and leaked online. One of the strangest things about the whole debacle is just how critical fans were of the footage. The fact that it’s development footage should explain everything you need to know but many criticised GTA VI as if they were looking at a finished game. The good news is that the rest of the industry is on hand to explain to those fans just how development works.

Speaking of GTA, check out this incredible mod which lets you play as The Boys’ Homelander in GTA VI.

Studios and developers are sharing development footage of their own released games to show video game fans just how much can change during the development process. Paul Ehreth worked on 2019’s Control and released a short clip alongside the caption, “Since graphics are the first thing finished in a video game, and Control won multiple awards for excellence in graphics, here is footage from the beginning of development.”

Since graphics are the first thing finished in a video game, and CONTROL won multiple awards for excellence in graphics, here is footage from the beginning of development :)

Full video here: https://t.co/l2g7oPhtk7
🔻 pic.twitter.com/cGnmJZXF5E

— Paul Ehreth 🔻 (@bacon_sanwich) September 20, 2022

Recent hit Cult Of The Lamb also joined in the trend, tweeting, “‘Graphics are the first thing finished in a video game.’ Here's what early versions of Cult of the Lamb looked like,” showing that’s clearly an incorrect assumption. Take a look at a few more examples below from Sea Of Thieves, Immortality, and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.

"Graphics are the first thing finished in a video game"

Here's what early versions of Cult of the Lamb looked like pic.twitter.com/F5EyEH6M9r

— Cult of the Lamb 🙏🐑👑 (@cultofthelamb) September 20, 2022

This is Sea of Thieves footage from Novmber of 2014. An upgrade from the earliest pill pirates, but still very much a work in progress. It was using Unity for more agile, iteratative testing, while work in Unreal at this time was very early, aiming to create the reveal trailer. pic.twitter.com/yIPLtBLIUv

— Jeph Pérez (@rare_fanatic) September 20, 2022

Here's that downhill chase section played in blockmesh vs art blockmesh vs final art. There are a million stages between. #blocktober pic.twitter.com/goTrkE2XEM

— Kurt Margenau (@kurtmargenau) October 4, 2017

"Graphics are the first thing finished in a video game"
FYI, here's what IMMORTALITY looked like for the first 2 years where we were focused on getting the A.I. and combat gameplay balanced vs. how it shipped pic.twitter.com/lXoBQeKYUO

— Sam Barlow, offering IMMORTALITY (@mrsambarlow) September 20, 2022

GTA VI is likely a few years away from release so of course, the development footage isn’t going to look like a finished game. We also don’t know exactly when the development footage was created. It could already be several years old. The lesson to be learnt is wait until the game is in your hands.