Grand Theft Auto VI is stacking up to be one of, if not the biggest launch in the history of the games industry, if analyst predictions are true. Despite the massive hype around the game, it will still be a console exclusive at launch and likely for a considerable time after that. However, according to Jérémy Hartvick, a former Rockstar developer who worked on GTA VI until 2020, in a recent interview with Kiwi Talkz, a port to Nintendo’s Switch 2 handheld isn’t likely.
As the developer explains, “I don’t believe it even makes sense, because I’m not sure the audience for GTA 6 is so much the audience for the Switch. If you’re a GTA fan, you would probably buy a console on which GTA will come out,” although the developer expects that it would be possible to get the game running on the Switch 2, albeit with compromises to things like in-game visuals.
Hartvick goes so far as to suggest that Rockstar could conceivably get GTA VI running on a smartphone in one way or another: “If they put their mind to it, you could be playing GTA 6 on your phone because that technology exists, and it has been proven.” Although he is likely referring to mobile game streaming, it’s possible that even without a native port, emulators and translation layers, like Valve’s FEX and Proton could get a playable experience on modern Arm SoCs.