In early 2009, just months after the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, Rockstar Games was already making waves with their next big project: Red Dead Redemption. But behind the scenes, something even more ambitious was beginning to take shape—the earliest foundations of Grand Theft Auto V.

While the gaming world’s eyes were on Liberty City and the Wild West, Rockstar quietly created the very first internal build of GTA 5 in April 2009, codenamed Project Rush. According to remnants left behind in a file called build.xml, this initial version was likely just a basic sandbox test running on the RAGE engine used in GTA 4. No missions, no map—just placeholder mechanics and framework.

2009–2010: Quiet Planning and Pre-Production
Though development had technically started, Rockstar remained completely silent about GTA 5. The first tiny hint came on November 13, 2009, when Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser casually mentioned in a Sunday Times interview that the next GTA game was in the works and the script would be around 1,000 pages long. This was the first public acknowledgment of the game’s existence.

With Red Dead Redemption launching successfully on May 18, 2010, Rockstar’s focus shifted more seriously toward GTA 5. A few months later, on July 26, 2010, gaming website VG247 broke the news that Rockstar was actively working on GTA 5 and that it would be set in Hollywood/Los Angeles. Eurogamer backed this up, reporting Rockstar developers were seen in Southern California, scouting neighborhoods, prisons, and even speaking to gang members and FBI agents.

Late 2010: The Game Becomes Playable—Barely
Build logs from late 2010 revealed that parts of the map had been created, but the game suffered from low FPS, flickering shadows, and broken reflections. It was still very much a prototype. As GTA 5 evolved into an online giant, the demand for modded accounts naturally followed—and so did the market for them. Despite this, internal documentation showed that GTA 5 was transitioning from early testing to active production.

November 2010: Hidden Casting Call for "Project Rush"
On November 22, 2010, Rockstar quietly published a casting call under the name “Rush.” It looked like an ordinary casting sheet for a crime drama—but it wasn’t. Telsey and Company, the casting agency behind Red Dead Redemption and L.A. Noire, was involved. The list of characters included a stoner named Kevin Dilva, a shady Armenian car dealer, and a corrupt FBI agent—clearly satirical GTA characters. But at the time, even the actors didn't know they were auditioning for a GTA title.

Early 2011: Core Gameplay Comes Together
By early 2011, Rockstar began implementing key systems like police AI and vehicle chases. The map was largely in place, and basic pedestrian and traffic systems had been added. But challenges remained. On March 2011, Rockstar registered strange domains like Lifeinvader.com and SixFigureTemps.com, hinting at GTA-style satire and in-game businesses.

Images from Rockstar developers' portfolios showed GTA 4’s minimap still present in test builds, proving that while GTA 5 was progressing, it still leaned heavily on GTA 4’s engine and assets.

March 2011: The Leak That Changed Everything
That same month, a fan uncovered the Rush casting call and recognized Telsey & Company’s involvement. Word spread fast. The pieces fit. The public finally realized: GTA 5 was in development.

By mid-2011, the game was far more advanced. Build logs mentioned the driving camera, helicopter crashes, and small UI changes—clear signs of a playable world being built. However, as more content was added, performance suffered on aging consoles with just 256 MB of video RAM, forcing Rockstar to cut things like interiors and vegetation.

Late 2011: Official Reveal Approaches
By October 2011, Rockstar invited a small group from Official PlayStation Magazine to preview 30 minutes of gameplay. They saw unfinished areas like a hospital, mall, and police station—none of which made it to the final release. On November 5, 2011, Rockstar officially announced GTA V. The site simply featured a black screen, the GTA 5 logo, and a countdown timer. Hype exploded.

Even in the first trailer, some map areas weren’t fully rendered, showing how much work still remained.

2012: The Game Nears Completion
In 2012, development logs became more stable, reflecting fewer bugs. Rockstar released the first official screenshots in July, showing a polished game—though with content like pink trees in Mirror Park that wouldn’t make the final cut.

Pre-orders opened on November 5, 2012, and Rockstar targeted a Spring 2013 release. But behind the scenes, major issues remained. Build logs from October–December 2012 showed persistent crashes, memory issues, and radio-related bugs. At one point, Rockstar disabled entire systems just to keep the game running.

By December 2012, their internal bug tracker listed over 900,000 issues—ranging from mission triggers failing to physics engine crashes.

2013: Delay and Polish
Realizing they couldn’t meet the Spring launch window, Rockstar officially delayed the game in January 2013, saying the extra time would be worth it. They were right.

In March 2013, fans noticed a mural being painted in Manhattan. As it took shape, it revealed Trevor’s face and confirmed it was the GTA V box art. The hype was back, and Rockstar was ready.

September 17, 2013: GTA 5 Launches
After years of leaks, speculation, internal setbacks, and delays, GTA 5 finally released on September 17, 2013. It became the fastest-selling entertainment product in history, generating over $1 billion in just three days.

The journey of GTA 5—from a hidden test build in 2009 to a worldwide blockbuster in 2013—was long, messy, and fascinating. Through development leaks, hidden casting calls, technical struggles, and public misdirection, Rockstar pulled off one of the most ambitious games ever made. And it all started with Project Rush, buried quietly inside a file almost no one noticed.