History of Rockstar Games in Timeline

Rockstar Games, a video game publisher based in New York City, was founded in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive. It was formed using assets acquired from BMG Interactive. Key founding members include Terry Donovan, Gary Foreman, Dan and Sam Houser, and Jamie King, all previously affiliated with Take-Two and BMG Interactive (in the Houser's case). Sam Houser currently leads Rockstar Games as president.

1997: Grand Theft Auto Original Entry Published

In 1997, the original entry of the Grand Theft Auto series was published by BMG Interactive before Rockstar Games took over the franchise.

March 12, 1998: Take-Two Interactive Acquires BMG Interactive Assets

On March 12, 1998, Take-Two Interactive announced its acquisition of the assets of BMG Interactive. Take-Two issued 1.85 million shares of its common stock to BMG Entertainment in exchange. Through this acquisition, Take-Two obtained several of BMG Interactive's former intellectual properties, including Grand Theft Auto.

December 1998: Rockstar Games Founded

In December 1998, Rockstar Games was established as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive by Terry Donovan, Gary Foreman, Dan and Sam Houser, and Jamie King. The Houser brothers were previously executives at BMG Interactive.

January 22, 1999: Rockstar Games Formation Announced

On January 22, 1999, the formation of Rockstar Games as the 'high-end' publishing label of Take-Two was formally announced. The company was established in December 1998.

October 30, 1999: First Rockstar Loft Held

On October 30, 1999, the first Rockstar Loft was held in western Chelsea, Manhattan, featuring Andi Hanley, Bob Sinclar, and Dimitri from Paris as headlining DJs.

1999: Rockstar Loft Club Night Established

In 1999, Donovan and Sam Houser cooperated with John Davis to establish the Rockstar Loft club night in New York City, aiming to provide an alternative to expensive and exclusive events while publicizing the young Rockstar Games.

1999: Rockstar Canada Acquisition

In 1999, Rockstar Canada (later renamed Rockstar Toronto) was acquired by Take-Two and became part of Rockstar Games.

February 19, 2000: Rockstar Loft Event

On February 19, 2000, another Rockstar Loft event was held as part of the series of club nights.

2001: Film Offer for Grand Theft Auto Rejected

Around the release of Grand Theft Auto III in 2001, Rockstar Games was offered $5 million for a film based on the Grand Theft Auto franchise, to be directed by Tony Scott and starring Eminem. Sam Houser rejected the offer.

2003: Gary Dale Joins Capcom

In 2003, Gary Dale joined Capcom's European operations as managing director after leaving BMG Interactive when it was acquired by Take-Two Interactive.

2004: Rockstar Games Produces The Football Factory

In 2004, Rockstar Games produced the sports drama film The Football Factory, based on the book of the same name by John King.

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2005: Rockstar Games Produces Sunday Driver and The Introduction

In 2005, Rockstar Games produced Sunday Driver, a documentary about the Majestics Lowrider Club, and The Introduction, an animated film, both bundled with the special edition of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

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2006: Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE) Created

In 2006, the Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE) was created by the Rockstar San Diego-internal RAGE Technology Group to facilitate game development on all platforms.

January 2007: Terry Donovan Leaves Rockstar Games

In January 2007, Terry Donovan, who was the managing director for Rockstar Games, left the company after a four-month leave of absence. He was succeeded by Gary Dale.

October 2011: Rockstar Games Avoids First-Person Shooters

In October 2011, Dan Houser stated that Rockstar Games was intentionally avoiding developing games in the first-person shooter genre, as it goes against their core values of creating unique experiences.

September 2013: Grand Theft Auto V Release

In September 2013, Grand Theft Auto V was released and has since sold over 200 million copies, becoming the second-best-selling video game of all time.

February 2014: Rockstar Games Sales Exceed 250 Million Copies

As of February 2014, Rockstar Games titles have shipped more than 250 million copies.

March 2014: Rockstar Games Receives BAFTA Fellowship Award

In March 2014, at the 10th British Academy Games Awards, Rockstar Games was honored with the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award for creating interactive worlds that have kept the company at the forefront of the gaming industry for over a decade.

November 2016: Grand Theft Auto Series Sales Reach 250 Million

As of November 2016, the Grand Theft Auto series alone has shipments of at least 250 million copies.

2018: Rockstar Games Employs Over 2,000 People

As of 2018, Rockstar Games employs more than 2,000 people across all offices.

May 2019: Rockstar Games Acquires Dhruva Interactive

In May 2019, Rockstar Games announced the acquisition of Dhruva Interactive from Starbreeze Studios for $7.9 million. The Dhruva team was merged into Rockstar India later that month.

September 2019: Rockstar Games Releases Game Launcher

In September 2019, Rockstar Games announced the release of its own game launcher, a digital distribution, digital rights management, multiplayer and communications service.

September 17, 2019: Rockstar Games Releases Launcher for Windows

On September 17, 2019, Rockstar Games released its own games launcher for Windows.

March 11, 2020: Dan Houser Leaves Rockstar Games

On March 11, 2020, Dan Houser left Rockstar Games after taking an extended break following the release of Red Dead Redemption 2 in early 2019.

October 2020: Rockstar Games Acquires Ruffian Games

In October 2020, Rockstar Games acquired the Scottish studio Ruffian Games, rebranding it as Rockstar Dundee.

May 2021: Rockstar Games Launches CircoLoco Records

In May 2021, Rockstar Games launched the record label CircoLoco Records in collaboration with Circoloco, an Ibiza-based dance party. The collaboration grew from a friendship between Sam Houser and Circoloco's promoter, Antonio Carbonaro.

June 2021: CircoLoco Records Releases Monday Dreamin'

In June 2021, CircoLoco Records' first release, Monday Dreamin', was released as a series of extended plays.

September 2022: Rockstar Games Suffers Data Breach

In September 2022, Rockstar Games was the target of a data breach in which 90 videos from the development of Grand Theft Auto VI were leaked. Rockstar described the leak as a 'network intrusion'.

August 2023: Rockstar Acquires Cfx.re (CitizenFX)

In August 2023, Rockstar acquired Cfx.re (CitizenFX), the team behind the modding platforms FiveM and RedM for Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 respectively.

November 2023: Branding Removed from Rockstar Games Social Club

By November 2023, most branding relating to Social Club was removed from Rockstar's website.

March 2025: Rockstar Acquires Video Games Deluxe

In March 2025, Rockstar announced it would acquire Sydney-based studio Video Games Deluxe, consisting of former L.A. Noire developers, and rename it Rockstar Australia.

July 15, 2025: Rockstar Games Social Club Core Features Discontinued

On July 15, 2025, core features of the Rockstar Games Social Club service, such as the activity feed, player profile viewing, and access to shared images and videos, were officially discontinued.