Rob Nelson is the current head of development / co-studio head at Rockstar North, alongside Aaron Garbut.
Career[]
Nelson joined Rockstar Toronto in circa 2005 as a producer.
He was credited as a producer on Grand Theft Auto IV and as Rockstar Toronto's art director on The Ballad of Gay Tony and Grand Theft Auto V.
While at Rockstar, he has also been credited on The Warriors, Manhunt 2, Bully, Red Dead Redemption, L.A. Noire, Max Payne 3 and Red Dead Redemption II.
After Leslie Benzies left Rockstar North on January 12, 2016, Rob Nelson became co-studio head of the studio, alongside Aaron Garbut.
In October 2018, prior to the release of Red Dead Redemption II, following Dan Houser's interview with Vulture where he had claimed "some of us were working 100-hour weeks", backlash from former employees, such as Job Stauffer and numerous others, led to Rob Nelson having to give clarifying comments on behalf of Rockstar North to The Guardian newspaper. In his interview, Nelson acknowledged that Rockstar’s working culture has been in need of improvement. Asked how the studio manages employees’ time and welfare, he said: “As best we can, and it’s something that we’re always striving to get better at. We’re growing as fast as we can, and we’re structuring our departments based on need, because we don’t want people working too hard... Do people work hard and is there overtime and extra effort put in? Yes, there is. Is it something we want happening regularly for long periods of time or as an accepted part of our process or as a ‘badge of honour’ thing? No, it is not. We are always trying to improve how we are working and balance what we are making with how we make it and we will not stop working to improve in this area.”[1]
Employment History[]
| From | To | Company | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| C. 2005 | January 2016 | Rockstar Toronto | Producer Art Director |
| January 2016 | Present | Rockstar North | Co-Studio Head Head of Development |
Video Game Credits[]
Producer[]
- Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)
Art Director[]
- The Ballad of Gay Tony (2009)
- Grand Theft Auto V (2013)