Rockstar explains current-gen choice for Grand Theft Auto V

Dan Houser has said that the end of the current console cycle is exactly the right time to release Grand Theft Auto V.

Before its release date was revealed last month, Rockstar’s enduring silence about the game had led many to speculate that the studio was holding off for a potential next-gen launch.

Such theories were ended when a spring 2013 release was announced.

"Rockstar is a content company, not a hardware company," Houser told Japanese weekly games mag Famitsu, as translated by Polygon. "We use the technology we have to create content, and we try not to let ourselves get beholden to the hardware.

The fact that hardware’s so mature right now is exactly why we’re able to go on to the next level. GTA 4 was our first attempt at a new platform and HD visuals, so the first part of development was seriously difficult. Now we know what the hardware’s capable of, so it’s become a lot easier to move things along and a lot more fun, too.

GTA: San Andreas came out at the peak of the PlayStation 2’s cycle, and we put out a really good game thanks to that. All the best games for a console come out at the end of the lifecycle, right? So now’s the best timing of all."

A second trailer for Grand Theft Auto V will be released by Rockstar later today. You can see it right here on MCV.