Ex-Rockstar dev shuts down GTA 5’s longest-running conspiracy theory

Long-time Rockstar designer Ben Hinchliffe has dashed the hopes of GTA 5 fans hoping to uncover the Mount Chiliad mystery.

The longevity of GTA 5 needs to be studied. Sure, part of it is due to necessity with the long wait for GTA 6 trapping players in the title, but with its successor getting closer by the day, there’s still a dedicated player base for GTA Online and the base game.

While most GTA conspiracists are busy trying to predict trailer drops for the next game via astrology, there are still some focused on an enduring enigma in GTA 5. The Mount Chiliad mystery has captured the imagination of players since GTA 5’s launch in 2013 and 11 years later, there’s still an active Subreddit of over 40,000 users attempting to solve it.

Unfortunately for those intrepid detectives, an interview with former Rockstar developer Ben Hinchliffe on GTA VI O’clock might signal the end of their long search for meaning. Hinchliffe explained how implementing Easter eggs works for the Rockstar team and it looks like the Mount Chiliad mystery may have been a wild goose chase.

Rockstar Games

This image fed GTA 5 conspiracy theorists for a literal decade.

For some context, the Mount Chiliad mystery relies on a cryptic map found on the landmark in GTA 5. Strange otherworldly symbols have been associated with aliens, the occult, and even parallel dimensions by sleuths trying to make sense of them.

When questioned about the conundrum, Hinchliffe qualified that while he didn’t work on this particular Easter egg, there has been some reaching on the part of fans. “Obviously, there’s always a desire to put in these really complex Easter egg hunts and trails that the really dedicated players will follow,” he said.

“As with all Easter eggs,” he interjected, “sometimes you just put them in to mess with people. They don’t actually do anything. You just mess with people, just to drive them a little bit crazy.” According to Hinchliffe, the Mount Chiliad mystery is one such example.

It’s a bit of a gut punch to those investigating the various phenomena that have been tied to GTA 5’s Mt. Chiliad. Players have to wonder what maddening mysteries in GTA 6 will be put there to baffle them.