GTA 5 Source Code Unearths Long-Lost Rockstar Protagonist

We may have gotten our first look at the main character from Rockstar’s infamously canceled spy thriller, Agent, thanks to the stolen Grand Theft Auto 5 source code. Back in 2023, the source code for GTA 5 was leaked (GTA 6‘s may have been stolen too), and dataminers now believe they’ve found the model and textures for Agent‘s protagonist therein. Agent was announced as a PlayStation 3 exclusive in 2009, but never saw the light of day.

The game never received a proper trailer, but was in development under the code name Jimmy, and a folder of the same name in the GTA 5 source code has yielded an unused character presumed to be Agent‘s protagonist. GTAForums user XanaBax shared the character model and textures created for “Jimmy,” noting similarities to similar assets used for GTA 4‘s Niko Bellic. Another post from XanaBax shows the model’s wireframe structure, demonstrating how Rockstar reuses character templates.

Click here to see the Agent protagonist model and textures on GTAForums, then scroll down to view its wireframe.

Agent Protagonist “Jimmy” Model & Textures Found In GTA 5 Source Code

The GTAForums thread started with four character models found in the GTA 5 source code that were assumed to be from Agent. Two ended up being GTA 5 NPCs, and a third appears in GTA 4‘s The Ballad of Gay Tony DLC. The fourth – Agent‘s presumed protagonist – was found under a node labeled “player,” has been seen before, albeit with different textures, in “a former environment artist’s portfolio from 2011,” shares many similarities with Niko’s model (indicating development continuity), and has not actually appeared in a Grand Theft Auto game.

Said portfolio pieces appear to still be viewable thanks to VG247, but they are admittedly not a great look at the character owing to the images’ small sizes. “Jimmy’s” similarities to Niko are important details because of Agent‘s known development timeline. The partnership between Sony and Rockstar to make a PS3 exclusive was announced in 2007, a year before GTA 4 came out and two years before Agent‘s title was revealed. Development on Agent would have been underway at the time or started shortly thereafter, and making alterations to Niko’s model to create “Jimmy” would have saved time and resources.

Agent Was Announced For The PS3 But Never Came Out

But Agent, clearly, never saw the light of day. It’s effectively canceled, but there was never any official confirmation of such. The nail in the coffin for those clinging to hope that it would eventually resurface was Rockstar parent company Take-Two abandoning the Agent trademark in 2018. Some of Agent‘s ideas may have been retooled into GTA 5‘s Trevor-centric DLC, which was also canceled. The single-player expansion, one of three reportedly canceled for GTA 5, would have seen Trevor working undercover for the series’ FBI parody, the Federal Investigation Bureau.

L.A. Noire and Max Payne 3 would come out two and three years after Agent‘s announcement, respectively, but the abandoned project was perhaps an early sign of Rockstar’s development efforts consolidating around only Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption. Agent remains alluring because of Rockstar’s now narrow catalog, and will likely remain one of the developer’s great what-ifs. Rockstar hasn’t been keen on divulging Agent information since it was shelved, but the Grand Theft Auto 5 source code could be hiding more unused assets.

Systems

Released

September 17, 2013

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol

Developer(s)

Rockstar North

Engine

Rockstar Advanced Game Engine