Rockstar Doesn't Pay Taxes in the UK, But it Does Create 1K Jobs So That's Ok?

To hear that video game companies can sometimes be a wee bit abusive when it comes to making money should be no surprise: we already know about the scummy way they nickel-and-dime people with loot boxes and microtransactions, the push towards “live services”, and of course all the pre-order season pass nonsense. But did you know most big game studios also cheat their way into more money by abusing tax loopholes?

I know, it’s shocking to hear the rich and powerful are managing to avoid paying their taxes. And one such rich and powerful group would be Rockstar, who recently got the attention of a UK-based “investigative think tank” called Tax Watch, who observed that despite making more than $6 billion on GTA V since 2014, hasn’t paid any UK Corporate Tax in the past four years.

Scandalous, right? Well, maybe not so much: Rockstar Games is using a legal tax break called the Games Tax Relief program, and although it was designed for small to medium studios, Rockstar isn’t outright forbidden from using it.

And as far as Rockstar is concerned, they’re just doing what the law wants. According to a spokesperson:

“The UK’s program to support the growth of a broad range of creative industries through tax relief is a proven success. The program has directly resulted in Rockstar Games significantly increasing its investment in the UK, creating well over 1,000 highly skilled and long term jobs across London, Lincoln, Yorkshire and Scotland. This investment and the success of British video games supported by the program not only significantly contributes to the economy, and to UK tax receipts, but also helps solidify the UK’s position at the forefront of video game development well into the future,”

They even dropped some phat numbers: apparently, it’s thanks to these tax cuts that Rockstar was able to employ 1,000 people in the UK.

Is that true? Who knows. Is it worth the lost taxes? Who can say. But it sure is a thing, there’s no doubting that.