Rockstar Games has accidentally revealed an unannounced feature of Grand Theft Auto 6 after submitting evidence in a UK court case over the dismissal of dozens of staff.

The studio is currently facing legal action from the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) after firing 34 employees in late 2025 for what it claims was “gross misconduct” involving the sharing of confidential information in a private Discord server. The workers allege the sackings were an attempt to crush union activity.

At a preliminary hearing in Glasgow, the tribunal rejected the workers’ bid for interim pay while the case proceeds. But court documents, viewed by investigative outlet People Make Games, have now revealed what Rockstar says was the “highly confidential” material at the centre of the dispute.

IWGB

According to the filings, two employees discussed a recent internal test session involving 32 players while complaining about new rules limiting how many staff could take time off at once.

One message said Rockstar had described the session as “difficult to do”, adding: “But that was 32 players. Not sure how that was difficult.”

Rockstar’s lawyers argued this was a leak of “commercially sensitive” information because it revealed the planned player count for an unannounced online service – widely assumed to be GTA 6’s online mode.

In another example, one worker was dismissed over a single message stating there was “no crunch” in Rockstar North’s QA team. Rockstar’s head of publishing, Jennifer Kolbe, claimed this could indicate the stage of GTA 6’s development.

The evidence also shows Rockstar flagged the presence of union representative and game developer Scott Alsworth in the Discord as a “legitimate risk”, citing his past writing for a British newspaper.

The tribunal noted that some dismissed staff had barely posted in the server, and that none were given a chance to respond before being fired. However, the judge said it was too early to conclude whether union activity was the main reason for the sackings.

A full hearing is still to come, but in trying to keep secrets under wraps, Rockstar may have revealed the first concrete detail about GTA 6’s online mode.