Grand Theft Auto 5 "feels next-gen" to Rockstar, says firm

Grand Theft Auto 5 may not be releasing on next-gen consoles but the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions feel next-gen to Rockstar.

Speaking with IGN, Rockstar North associate technical director and combat designer Phil Hooker said part of the reason it feels next-gen to the developers is the team was familair with the hardware after developing GTA 4.

“Every aspect of the game had to be better, richer in gameplay and more fluid and knowing we were launching on the same platforms meant we could focus on extracting the most out of those consoles and making the game as fantastic as possible," said Hooker.

“In the end we surpassed our own expectations and during development I think everyone working on the game has been astounded by improvements to the graphics, or new mechanics, or AI, or mission scope along the way.

“Hopefully the gamers will see all of these improvements at once in one go, compared to GTA 4 this definitely feels 'next generation' to us.”

Grand Theft Auto 5 will be released on September 17.

Thanks, MCV.