GTA Online reportedly scrapped game mode over police brutality concerns

A new report claims that Rockstar Games canned a game mode in development for GTA Online, amid public outcry over police brutality in 2020.

New details have begun to emerge about both the upcoming GTA 6 and how developer Rockstar Games has shaken up their work culture behind the scenes.

While we now know more than ever about both the protagonists of GTA 6, as well as which location they’re going with, there’s also been some news dropped about how the development of GTA Online has changed over recent years.

Rockstar reportedly shelved ‘Cops ‘n’ Crooks’ GTA Online mode

A report from Bloomberg on July 27 revealed that Rockstar had canceled a new mode they were working on for GTA Online called Cops ‘n’ Crooks.

The mode was planned to be “a twist on the children’s game where players organize into teams of good guys and bad guys” that was shelved by senior executives who were “concerned about how the narrative might be interpreted during a time of heightened skepticism and mistrust of American police” in the summer of 2020.

Although the game mode was only put aside at the time, the company hasn’t made plans for the mode to ever return.

The report also shined a light on Rockstar changing up its internal culture by adding more producers, converting contracts to full-time employees, and adding new mental health benefits.

Despite the game mode that never saw the light of day and GTA 6 still being years away from an official release, there is still plenty of content being released for GTA Online players to chew through.