The tension between Rockstar Games and Grove Street Games, the main developer of the Grand Theft Auto Trilogy: Definitive Edition, has hit a new high after a recent update. Thomas Williamson, the CEO of Grove Street Games, has publicly criticized Rockstar for removing his studio’s logo and references from the opening credits of the remastered trilogy. His comments suggest he was unhappy with the move, which reportedly surprised the developer.
In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Williamson called the decision a “dick move,” noting the irony of the removal since his team was responsible for many of the improvements in the latest update. He wrote, “Speaking entirely hypothetically: It’s a dick move to remove primary developers from credits in an update, especially when the update includes hundreds of fixes provided by those developers that stayed out of players’ hands for years.”
The GTA Trilogy: Definitive Edition, which includes Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City, and San Andreas, launched in 2021 to widespread criticism due to its underwhelming graphics and numerous technical issues. While the latest update seems to have improved the collection’s presentation—introducing a “classic lighting mode” to consoles and implementing what fans describe as hundreds of unlisted fixes”—the removal of Grove Street Games’ logo and copyright references has overshadowed these fixes. However, individual staff members from Grove Street Games are still credited within the games themselves.
Rockstar has not yet stated the removal, leaving speculation open. For now, it seems the surprising overhaul of the trilogy has reignited a controversy that continues to follow this high-profile release.
