Videogame with longest ever development period makes wait for GTA VI seem like nothing
The games industry and gamers alike were sent scrambling last week when Rockstar Games announced that Grand Theft Auto VI was getting another delay.
Originally slated to launch in May 2026, it’s now pegged for 19 November 2026 – just in time to deck the halls. Fans eagerly awaiting what will be the biggest entertainment property of the year were of course disappointed, but if you look at the history of game development, they could have it a lot worse.
Grand Theft Auto VI isn’t even close to the longest development period for a videogame.
A scene from GTA VI
Though it was undoubtedly in development beforehand, GTA VI was officially announced in 2023. Compare that with Duke Nukem Forever (Gearbox Software), which was announced in 1997 and was to be developed by 3DRealms. After numerous delays, the developer downsizing, and the project moving to a new developer and publisher, the game was finally released on 10 June 2011 after 14 years!
For a long time, Duke Nukem Forever held the Guinness World Records title of longest development period for a videogame, although other games did come close. A new game in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. survival horror series was announced in 2010, after the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Call of Pripyat (GSC Game World, 2009).
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Development was cancelled in 2012, before being restarted in 2018, and the game itself finally hit PC and Xbox on 20 November 2024, with a PlayStation version out later this month.
But both of these were unexpectedly eclipsed by Kien (AgeOfGames), in 2024. This Italian action adventure released for the Game Boy Advance, a Nintendo handheld that itself came out in 2001 and is long-discontinued.
A scene from Kien
Why did Kien launch on such an old device? Because development on Kien started way, way back in 2002. The publisher, Incube8, specializes in producing cartridges for retro 8-bit consoles. Almost all of the original team departed the project – because, you know, 22 years is a long time – and Kien was finally completed by the last man standing, Fabio Belsanti (Italy). Well done to him for persevering.
22 years is going to be a tough nut to crack, and it’s the sort of record a developer isn’t going to try to beat, but there are some games in the running that could make it one day.
2013’s The Wolf Among Us (Telltale Games) is an episodic adventure based on the Fables comic series by Bill Williams, following characters from folklore living in modern day New York City. It was a hit on its release, and a sequel was announced in 2017, but Telltale Games unexpectedly closed in 2018.
The studio was revived soon after, and The Wolf Among Us 2 was reannounced in 2019, but little news has been heard since – except confirmation in 2024 that the game was still in development after seven years.
Much closer to the crown is Beyond Good And Evil 2, a slated sequel to Ubisoft’ s fan-favourite action adventure Beyond Good & Evil (2003).
A scene from Beyond Good and Evil 2
Little was heard about the sequel after it was announced in 2008, until it was re-revealed in 2017 at the now-defunct E3 trade show. Though things have gone quiet again, it was confirmed to still be in development in October 2024. If Beyond Good & Evil 2 hasn’t’ been cancelled or released by 2030, it’ll take Kien’s perhaps unenviable crown!
For more amazing facts about the biggest, best and weirdest events in videogames, check out the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2026, on sale now!