Obbe Vermeij was the technical director at Rockstar North from 1995 to 2009.
Career[]
Vermeij joined Rockstar North, originally DMA Design, in 1995 as designer and coder. He initially worked on the game Space Station Silicon Valley as a programmer.
He was first credited in 2001's Grand Theft Auto III as a technical director, alongside Adam Fowler. He went on to subsequently be credited in this role in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, Grand Theft Auto IV, The Lost and Damned and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars.
Vermeij left Rockstar North in June 2009, as after the release of GTA IV, he felt the series and company had become so big that he wasn't enjoying the smaller roles he was finding himself in.[1]
Community engagement[]
On November 10, 2023, Vermeij started a blog about his time at Rockstar North, in which he would describe various development stories from within the studio. One such story noted that Rockstar were originally working on a sequel to GTA 2 known as Grand Theft Auto 2.5.[2]
Following his blog, Vermeij regularly shares anecdotes from his time at Rockstar on X, often recounting his roles during the development of previous GTA titles. His posts often delve into various aspects of game development, such as technicalities, gameplay mechanics, release milestones, achievements, and overall life within the studio. His posts repeatedly see high engagement, with fans of the GTA series responding with questions and comments. Some of his most well-engaged posts give explanations of infamous glitches within the series, including the enlarging Moon, random plane crashes and disappearing roads.[3]
Employment History[]
| From | To | Company | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 1995 | June 2009 | Rockstar North | Technical Director |
| June 2013 | Present | GabberGames | Owner |
| January 2018 | Present | Learnia Inc | Owner |
Video Game Credits[]
Technical Director[]
- Grand Theft Auto III (2001)
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002)
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)
- Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (2005)
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (2006)
- Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)
- The Lost and Damned (2009)
- Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (2009)