GTA 6 theories are like mice. Each time you discover one, you should remember there are about 800 more living in your walls. And they're persistent, as I'm learning now that new screenshots have brushed off GTA fans' half-buried suspicion that a Red Dead Redemption 2 crossover is waiting for them.

Generally, I don't find this idea impossible. Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption are two of developer Rockstar's favorite children, and despite the fact that the franchises take place about 120 years apart, they're narratively linked: rough guys in a rough open-world make morally grey decisions and are allowed to slap prostitutes. GTA has plenty of Red Dead easter eggs, too, like a red John Marston shirt some NPCs can stroll around with in GTA 5.

But this GTA 6 theory is much more substantial than a cute wink and a boardwalk T-shirt. Fans think GTA 6's criminal protagonist Jason is related to Red Dead 2 antihero Arthur Morgan because they both have freckles and kind of a squash-like nose.

The 63 new screenshots Rockstar revealed this week alongside its GTA 6 Ultimate Edition announcement are currently refueling comparisons between the two world-weary men. Rockstar content creator Synth Potato comments on Twitter about the way Jason and Arthur both frown a lot, "Jason could absolutely pass as a direct descendant of Arthur Morgan, he's the spitting image of him."

Twitter account TheCassiniGames agrees in a post with, as of writing, over 33,000 likes, saying "Jason Duval from GTA 6 looks a lot like Arthur Morgan." The accompanying screenshot comparison shows Jason looking like a pouty Calvin Klein model, with a pair of lucite sunglasses, while Arthur Morgan looks like a guy with sun damage who fell off his horse.

I'm sorry, but I just don't see it. There are some situations that make me think, "these are just two white guys" – I have that thought a lot while watching reality TV like Love Island. And I'm thinking it now, partner.

GTA 6 pre-orders live - stock is flying and bundles are hitting the shelves.

GTA 6 and a string of other high-profile games might be forgoing discs altogether, but US physical game sales actually grew ever so slightly for the first time in 17 years.

Rockstar Games recently caused a big online hullabaloo after announcing that physical copies of GTA 6 won't actually contain a disc come launch, just a code that lets people download a digital version. Multiple retailers began dropping what will eventually become the biggest game of the year over its code-in-a-box plan, although Circana senior director and prominent analyst Mat Piscatella predicted this won't actually have any impact on sales..

Curiously though, Piscatella also shares that physical game sales in the United States actually enjoyed a rare glimpse of hope – for the first time since 2009's feverish peak, dollars spent on physical game releases shot up year-on-year by 3%.

US new physical video game software spending. 12 months ending May 2007-2026:

— @matpiscatella.bsky.social (@matpiscatella.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-06-26T16:27:48.105Z

Physical game sales have been on a big decline since 2009's $11.5 billion record, but now "spending is up by 3% in the 12-month ending May 2026," according to Piscatella. Don't be too quick to celebrate now, collectors. This uptick is apparently not a sign of things to come, he says.

"The overwhelming majority of volume is done digitally now," Piscatella writes on social media. "The second hand market... doesn't really matter. More than half of all Xbox Series consoles in the US don't have a physical drive, while over a quarter of PS5s are the same. We likely have less than a decade left of physical software." Ominous indeed.

GTA 6 ignoring a real physical release is also worrying since the Rockstar Games behemoth is guaranteed to sell consoles, especially since it's not immediately coming out on PC, but many prospective console buyers might opt for hardware without disc drives thanks to the game's digital-only launch. I can only imagine that'll further snowball the death of boxed games, our ability to share them with people in our real lives, the preservation of art, and, you know, our ownership over the things we've paid for.

Analysts expect GTA 6 could sell up to 30 million copies at launch, but are unsure if it can "surpass the incredible longevity and massive sales of 5" in the long run.

It's going to be a busy holiday season this year, since GTA 6 is actually coming out in November. While people rush to pick up what may very well go down in history as the biggest video game ever, people in the know on the retail side of things warn you might want to get a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S now if you're planning on getting one and haven't already.

This comes from a report in The Game Business, who spoke to a senior games buyer at a retail outlet operating under anonymity. "We’ve been informed that because of the ongoing issues around hardware component availability, we won’t be getting the units we want ahead of GTA," he says. "Demand will likely outstrip supply during the year end period."

As much really reflects the state of the industry. Stock supplies have been difficult for some time now, and it was always unlikely that'd change in time for Rockstar's new crime sim. Grand Theft Auto 6 is going to shift a lot of systems, and it's difficult to anticipate or prepare for the kind of demand the sequel's going to generate.

Microsoft, at least, is aware of the strain that's coming, per comments made to The Game Business by Matthew Ball, Xbox's chief strategy officer. "I can tell you definitively, demand for our console exceeds the supply. We are putting them in as many stores as possible," he explains.

"We are producing them as quickly as possible," Ball says. "There is a severe limitation to how quickly we can do that, but it’s not a question of appetite. We need to do more, but there are constraints here."

The race is already on between Sony and Microsoft right now for who gets people's money. PlayStation is going all in, having changed the PS5 dashboard to advertise the latest GTA, and even going so far as to alter the PS app to match the aesthetic of Rockstar's new game. Whoever wins, it seems the only losers will be those stuck waiting for a system to play-through Lucia and Jason's sordid journey.

Rockstar veteran says there's a good reason why GTA 6 is more expensive than most titles – it's "not an average AAA game"

Now that GTA 6 pre-orders are finally live and folks are spending their hard-earned money on Rockstar Games' next big hit, some of the community is sharing its dismay at the price… which, yeah, isn't exactly cheap.

In case you missed it, GTA 6 costs at least $80 – the Ultimate Edition, which controversially contains a lot of content people thought would be in the base game (you know, like certain customization shops and whatnot), is a whopping $100.

Unsurprisingly, this pricing has caused a bit of a stir within the community… but one Rockstar veteran doesn't think it's unfounded for the new Grand Theft Auto to cost so much.

Former Rockstar technical director Obbe Vermeij, who worked on GTA 3, 4, San Andreas, Vice City, and more, responds to a disappointed fan over on Twitter, who notes that the GTA 6 price is a good $20 more than "the average AAA game" in Canada. Vermeij writes, "GTA 6 is not an average AAA game."

Although he doesn't explicitly say that the game is priced reasonably here, the implication is evident: its cost makes sense.

After all, a solid 13 years have passed since GTA 5 graced us with its ever-chaotic presence on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 – it's been cookin' in fans' minds for over a decade, and they're ready for it… even if that means paying a hundred buckaroos or so.

Comments under the ex-developer's reply prove as much, too, with the original poster even saying, "That's true." Another person jokes, "Some might say it's [a] quadruple-A game."

Interestingly, though, Vermeij previously shared that GTA 6 likely won't cost $100 – and while it's admittedly only $80 in the United States ('only'… hahaha), the Ultimate Edition is $100. I personally just can't wait to see what the stats reveal about its sales, honestly.

More GTA 6 features may have been leaked by Amazon: switchable protagonists, in-game social media, and more.

There's a high chance GTA 6 will be the most absurdly detailed and densest among the best open-world games ever made when it releases on November 19. The long-awaited return to Vice City is at the centre of Rockstar Games' blockbuster, but we know we'll be getting more of the state of Leonida in the same way GTA 5 expanded its map beyond a very impressive refresh of Los Santos. Will it be shaped by DNA inherited from Red Dead Redemption 2 though?

As GTA 6 promises "more and better" of everything and to set a new bar for living and breathing sandboxes moving forward, I believe we shouldn't ignore the potential of the fictional American state of Leonida. Vice City may be the main attraction as the capital, but the thin marketing materials haven't shied away from showing us more about the natural environments and animals that inhabit the broader state itself. However, it's not enough to just have them; I hope GTA has learned from Red Dead's penchant for outdoor activities.

Lessons from the Wild West

Back in 2013, the larger San Andreas map wasn't particularly exciting. It wasn't until later updates came that more animal species and activities involving them like the GTA 5 wildlife photography challenge were added. Even then, Red Dead Redemption was where Rockstar paid more attention to nature outside crime-filled missions, and RDR2 took everything related to wildlife and its untamed areas to ridiculous levels – finding all the Red Dead Redemption 2 animal locations and completing that compendium was arguably the hardest thing in the entire game.

One of the funniest (and best if you ask me) things Rockstar did with Red Dead Redemption 2 was tricking everyone into playing what's essentially a "cowboy simulator" more often than not. Your mileage may vary, but I always felt the studio's obsession with details would lead to games with heavy simulation elements. More time and money has only enabled the developers to push things further, and while we might argue about how many details are too many details (more on that when GTA 6 releases), the truth is post-GTA 5 Rockstar has done a fine job of making its massive game worlds (including Los Santos over the years) fun to spend time in.

Not everyone was ready for the slow pace of RDR2's early hours or how meandering it can be at times, but those are signs of developers treating its world with respect and not just like a giant playground to fill with lots of content to grind through, an easy pitfall of many modern sandboxes. Though it might be argued Pearl Abyss' Crimson Desert ticks plenty of items off the Ubisoft school of design checklist, it's also managed to enchant millions with a truly dense continent full of surprises and opportunities, giving Arthur more to do more than fighting and looting – and nature is at the centre of much of it.

As memorable as RDR2's tale of criminals in a dying West is, I strongly believe most of it wouldn't have hit as hard without the time Arthur (and John) spend indulging in everyday mundanity. It's during those sections – enforced by the game or sought by the player – that we get a glimpse of normalcy amid all the senseless violence and betrayal. Go fishing, find some wild horses to tame, complete your massive compendium of odd animals for that guy you barely know... Tens of hours can be spent engaging with places that haven't been fully invaded by man, and there's space for that experience in GTA too. Swamps and glades needn't just be different scenarios for drug runners and those the wacky hillbilly encounters no doubt awaiting us.

Finding balance

There's always the danger of Take-Two and Rockstar choosing to overcorrect based on the complaints of a loud minority, but when RDR2's success continues to impress eight years later and vast but forgettable open worlds abound, a GTA 6 that's breezier and too focused on the "criminal life" we already know well would be a mistake.

Yes, the game is about Lucia and Jason's "new life" in Vice City first and foremost, but the sandbox bar has been raised several times since GTA 5 came out, and many other studios have almost caught up.

RDR2 still feels like a unique and special beast though. Having the chance to disconnect from criminal activities and visit confirmed natural locations like the Mount Kalaga National Park is the type of thing that can elevate GTA 6. Leaning on the brand of world-building and secondary content only Rockstar (and a few others) can afford to put out on such a scale, switching to totally different genres with ease, is a rare sight. With the past having told us players appreciate getting to live digital lives at their own pace without an urgent need to clear content, I hope that kayaking and off-road hiking aren't limited to NPCs waiting to be murdered, and that birdwatching is an actual hobby I can partake in and be rewarded for. Seriously.

The older I get and the more selective I have to be with my gaming time, the more I appreciate open worlds that put their size and depth to good use. I'm always down to explore new sandboxes, but I only stick around and revisit the ones that feel truly unpredictable and alive. This means I'd rather feed alligators and go diving with sea turtles in GTA 6 than clear a hundred gang hideouts after its credits have rolled.

In this case, I'm confident in Rockstar's ability to repeat (and improve on) RDR2's balancing act. It's the only way the studio can justify all those years in development and cutting-edge visuals; Grand Theft Auto 6 must be more than just GTA: Vice City in 2026.

Here are all the latest GTA 6 activities, customization, and gameplay details revealed now that pre-orders are live!

If an Amazon Brazil description is to be believed, GTA 6 will have in-game social media and missions that have you switching between its two main characters. Neither is too surprising – GTA 5 had us ping-ponging across three guys and digital feeds absolutely littered GTA 6's first trailer – but the features are still notable since Rockstar Games has yet to say anything about them.

So, take everything from here on out with a grain of salt, but Amazon Brazil's store description for the GTA 6 pre-orders lists a bunch of features – some of which we've known about for a while (Vice City's here, for example), some of which we could've guessed (dynamic weather's also in), and some of which haven't actually been confirmed by Rockstar Games.

GTA 6's main difference from past titles is that this one's the kind-of love story of Jason and Lucia, so, naturally, both are playable, but the sequel's also seemingly borrowing from its older sibling with duo missions. Sounds like we'll be able to swap who we control in the middle of missions, if not the entire open world, similarly to GTA 5.

The other notable feature is the built-in social media. Amazon's listing mentions players can watch videos, follow influencers, and maybe even get clued in on open-world activities via Jason or Lucia's phone.

Grand Theft Auto's no stranger to dabbling in made-up internet spaces. GTA 4 had the very of-its-time internet cafes for browsing websites, and GTA 5 plopped the entire digital space onto our characters' phones, complete with a stock market and websites to purchase all types of goods. As the series often does, it sounds like GTA 6 is once again updating its satire for the modern era, only this time perhaps with interactive doomscrolling and brainrot content in case you need a break from doing that in real-life. The ultimate gaming power fantasy, eh?

Keep in mind Rockstar Games hasn't outright confirmed these features or really delved into the game at all, so don't get too attached to the idea of Grand Theft TikTok.

Analysts expect GTA 6 could sell up to 30 million copies at launch, but are unsure if it can "surpass the incredible longevity and massive sales of 5" in the long run.

Analysts predict GTA 6 will obviously be a massive success at launch, but they don't necessarily see it becoming as much of a long-term juggernaut as GTA 5 has been.

Rockstar Games finally revealed details about the upcoming open-world game yesterday, with the GTA 6 price sitting at $80. Speaking to GamesRadar+ David Cole, founder and CEO of DFC Intelligence, says that despite the fears some had that the game would be $100, this price "was not a surprise." Serkan Toto, founder and CEO of Kantan Games, tells us it was "expected" that the game wouldn't launch at the $70 standard, but thinks "expecting $100 was not crazy in my book. However, that sum would probably be a tad too much even for GTA 6."

As Cole says, "the biggest surprise was that the physical version does not have a disc," and despite some pushback on this, it probably won't end up effecting sales all that much.

We asked Cole how many copies he expects GTA 6 to sell now that it has an official price point. "Our estimate for day one sales, mostly pre-orders, is 25 million," he tells us. GTA 5 previously sold 11 million copies in its first day when it launched back in 2013, so more than double of that would certainly be huge, especially with 13 years of hype behind it. Meanwhile, Toto, reckons it could be even higher: "30 million units should be possible."

However, GTA 5 went on to sell almost 230 million copies during the 13 year wait between it and GTA 6, but this isn't a feat that Cole expects is guaranteed to be surpassed by the latest entry. "It could be hard for GTA 6 to surpass the incredible longevity and massive sales of 5," Cole explains. "We think GTA 6 will be stronger upfront but whether it can have the remarkable lifespan of its predecessor remains an open question."

"The biggest issue GTA 6 has is the limited installed base of the platforms it is launching for," Cole explains, adding: "Obviously, GTA 5 gained the bulk of its sales over time as it launched for new platforms and PC. We expect GTA 6 to follow a similar trajectory."

Analyst Joost van Dreunen,once the CEO of games market research firm SuperData Research who now teaches at the NYU Stern School of Business, also expects "GTA 6's long-term sales to underperform compared to its predecessor." He explains: "When GTA 5 launched in 2013, the industry was about to enter a historic growth spurt, and over the decade that followed, global consumer spending tripled from $76 billion to $236 billion. I don't expect to see that repeat in the years ahead."

Even so, Van Dreunen is also optimistic about GTA 6's sales. "I predict GTA 6 will at least match its predecessor's launch and sell-in to at least 30 percent of the overall console audience, totaling 38 million copies and just over $3 billion in sales within its first 12 months," he tells us. And, while he thinks its overall sales figures might end up lower than GTA 5, "per player spending will be higher" as he expects Rockstar to "cater to a smaller player base that it will nonetheless monetize quite effectively."

GTA 6 could get a physical disc release only a month after its code-in-a-box launch, it's claimed, which could be good news for collectors and bad news for FOMO

Fans are warning that the free month of GTA+ included in your GTA 6 pre-orders will be automatically set to renew, so make sure to turn that off if you don't want to pay for more.

Rockstar Games confirmed the GTA 6 price yesterday ahead of the pre-orders going live today, which also included the biggest info dump we've had about the game probably ever. The GTA 6 Ultimate Edition was confirmed, as was the fact that there's exclusive content locked behind the $100 version, as well as other annoying bits of news like GTA 6 physical copies being a code in a box.

Rockstar also confirmed that anyone who pre-orders GTA 6 will get a cosmetic pack inspired by GTA Vice City, but there's another pre-order bonus in there in the form of a free month of GTA+. Rockstar's own subscription gives you benefits on GTA Online, as well as access to a number of games in the Rockstar back catalogue like Bully, Red Dead Redemption, and GTA 5.

However, fans have noticed that the free month of GTA+ will automatically renew for anyone who activates it. It's worth noting that it's not a case of pre-ordering GTA 6 and you'll automatically be put on the subscription, instead you'll be sent an email with an activation code for GTA+, and once you activate it then it will be put on an auto-renew process.

So, PSA to anyone who pre-orders GTA 6 and activates their free month of GTA+ – go and check your console's subscription tab and turn off auto-renew for GTA+. Unless you fancy keeping it, in which case do nothing, I guess?

Multiple retailers drop GTA 6 after physical version is confirmed to be a code in a box.

As you've no doubt noticed, GTA 6 is on the horizon. Releasing on November 19, GTA 6 pre-orders are now open, letting players prepare for Rockstar's new crime sandbox to engulf their lives. Sony's already rolled out the red carpet, plastering the game across PlayStation 5 landing pages, despite it being a multi-platform release.

If you boot up your PS5 console right now, the first thing you'll be greeted by is an advertisement for the sixth mainline Grand Theft Auto. The neon 'VI' symbol comes up first, before transitioning to a portal to pre-order. "Experience the biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet," reads the description, before inviting you to put money for the upcoming blockbuster.

Then, of course, if you move over to the store, you're immediately pointed toward the page for GTA 6. If you thought you could escape by using the PS App, think again. The icon's been altered to have a bright pink and blue aesthetic with palm trees, representing sunny Leonidas, the GTA universe's equivalent of Florida. There's even a bespoke banner on the PlayStation social media accounts.

Typically, this wouldn't be surprising, because developers, publishers and system manufacturers want you to buy their games. What makes this stand out is that Sony has nothing to do with putting out GTA 6. The series hasn't been console exclusive for decades, and while a PC port isn't happening day-and-date, Jason and Lucia's escapades will also be on Xbox Series X/S.

Sony is going hard on just how well the latest Grand Theft Auto will run on its current console, too. Mary Yee, senior vice president of marketing at SIE, published a blog detailing all the reasons why. "Grand Theft Auto 6 will play best on PS5 by taking advantage of PS5's immersive features to deliver a deeply engaging single-player experience," she writes, before going into all the ways the system will heighten the experience.

Many of Sony's own games don't get this treatment. Marathon and Saros definitely weren't pushed this hard, and I don't recall Spider-Man 2 being quite as prominent. Perhaps we'll see Marvel's Wolverine clawing at us from the dash come September, but I'm not so confident we will. Seems like GTA is truly in a league of its own.

Multiple retailers drop GTA 6 after physical version is confirmed to be a code in a box.

GTA 6 will reportedly be getting a physical release after all, with disc editions of the game rumored to release in December 2026.

Rockstar Games finally releasing more details about GTA 6 – such as the GTA 6 price, details about the Ultimate Edition, and other assorted bits of news – is something that you would expect to bring universal happiness given how much people have been dying to hear anything about the game. However, some of Rockstar's decisions have drawn ire, such as exclusive content locked behind the $100 Ultimate Edition and the news that there won't be a proper physical release, as GTA 6 physical copies are a code in a box.

Polish outlet PPE (via machine translation) is reporting that this won't be the case forever though. According to a source who previously kicked off rumors that Rockstar was going to delay physical copies of GTA 6 (which is somehow potentially both true and untrue), Rockstar's open-world title will get a disc release after all. Their source reports that the code-in-box versions of GTA 6 will be the original run, with an option for a disc edition to follow sometime in December 2026.

If this turns out to be true, this somewhat confirms the theory that Rockstar is delaying physical copies of the game to avoid widespread leaks like we witnessed earlier this year with Resident Evil Requiem.

However, there's also a cynical part of me that sees this as an extension of the way Rockstar treats PC releases. Releasing a PC version of Rockstar games a year or so later always results in double dip sales as people buy it on console out of FOMO before buying it on PC to get the best version. Take-Two undoubtedly knows this is a factor, and given that analysts predict GTA 6 not having a physical disc won't have any impact on Rockstar's sales, it's hard not to see this as a way to get FOMO sales from people who want a physical copy, hoping they'll drop another $80 on it weeks later once a real physical version releases.

Multiple retailers drop GTA 6 after physical version is confirmed to be a code in a box.

GTA 6 is, in effect, a digital-only release. You'll be able to buy physical boxes at retail come November, but those will only include a code to be redeemed for a digital copy of the game. For some boutique retailers that specialize in physical games, that doesn't exactly sound like a future worth supporting – which is why they've decided to drop GTA 6 pre-orders altogether.

One of those stores is VGP, a Canadian retailer that's become prominent in the collecting scene for its regular restocks of rare physical titles and its willingness to document such minutiae as, say, specific cart revisions of Nintendo-published Switch games. It's a go-to outlet for people who still care about physical games, and it has a standing policy of not carrying "code in a box" releases. That's not changing even for a juggernaut like GTA 6.

"For nearly 40 years, VGP has been committed to supporting physical media and preserving the value of physical game ownership," the retailer says in a message on Bluesky. "As part of that commitment, our company policy is that we do not carry physical products for video game consoles that contain only a digital download code."

VGP adds that "We want to be clear that this decision is not a reflection of the game itself. We have tremendous respect for Rockstar Games and the incredible achievement that Grand Theft Auto VI represents. Should Rockstar one day release a physical edition containing a disc in the box, we would be pleased to carry and support that version for our customers."

A similar statement came from another retailer I was much less familiar with: the US-based Loot Box Gaming. "We will not be supporting the release of GTA 6," the company says in a tweet. "When we started LBG, it was out of a love for our favorite form of media, gaming, as-well as the preservation of said media. If a product can’t honor the people who pay their hard earned money to purchase it, then we have no business trying to sell it to our customers whom we value above anything else."

Analyst Mat Piscatella suspects that GTA 6 won't see any notable negative sales impact from ditching the physical release, and he's providing some interesting context on similar releases. "30 video games have sold at least 1k units of code-in-box physical copies in the US so far in 2026," Piscatella says on Bluesky, covering everything from the Switch 2 version of Split Fiction to PC editions of 007 First Light. "In total, 146 video games have featured physical code-in-box SKUs to date in the US."

The supposed death of physical media has been greatly exaggerated over the past few years – I say, clutching each new PS5 disc I buy with increasing protectiveness – but it is absolutely disappointing to see what might just be the biggest game launch of all time ditch the disc.

Here are all the new games for 2026 and beyond you need to know about.

Like everyone else, I woke up this morning to the news that GTA 6 will be $80, and Rockstar is pushing the $100 barrier with a big ol' Ultimate Edition. Through bleary eyes, I was almost grateful to see that the Ultimate Edition was so expensive ahead of the GTA 6 pre-orders, since there'd be no chance I wanted it anyway – in most cases, I'd be willing to pay extra not to get all the game-breaking nonsense included with a typical deluxe edition or pre-order bonus, since it almost always ruins the experience of a first playthrough.

But then, buried deep within Rockstar's promotional materials, I saw this line: "Ultimate Edition bonuses become available to Jason and Lucia across their story, with new items uncovered behind each chapter." Could it be? Has Rockstar really broken the curse of the ill-considered deluxe edition bonus? Maybe those bonus outfits really are $100 worth of cool after all…

A not-so-deluxe experience

While the threat of $100 games hasn't truly come to fruition, analysts have noted that the average price that people are paying at launch is creeping ever higher thanks to pricey deluxe and collector's editions. Sometimes, those deluxe editions contain something genuinely meaningful, like a season pass filled with post-launch DLC or some genuinely fun cosmetics.

Far more often, though, deluxe editions are sold with the promise of overpowered weapons that'll give you some kind of major advantage in the game, and early unlocks for skill points and items that you'd otherwise get access to naturally. Maybe I'm just not enough of a capital-G Gamer to get it, but I generally like playing a game in order to, you know, play the game – not to have a bunch of powerful items dropped on me from minute one that completely wreck the progression curve.

One of the most egregious examples of a wildly unnecessary deluxe edition comes from The Last of Us Part 1, where you can pay $10 extra to increase your crafting, healing, and reload speed and make your rifle clips bigger. In other words, you "get" the privilege of ignoring the game's natural progression curve, killing the tension of the early survival elements because you got suckered into paying extra for the "best" experience.

I'm not even typing in the bonus item codes that often come with my physical PS5 games – not that I'll be getting a physical copy of GTA 6 – until I've gotten the platinum trophy these days. Does that put me at risk of forgetting these codes exist altogether? Absolutely. Am I going to miss the items I'm not getting? Extremely doubtful.

Ultimate questions

For GTA 6, Rockstar seems to have actually considered the balance issues. The items in the Ultimate Edition and pre-order pack seem to be mostly cosmetic, but there are hints of more meaningful gameplay bonuses: a handgun with an enhanced scope, vehicle shops with exclusive mods, and a gang shop with "some special items and distinct contraband," for example. (Thankfully, the pre-order bonuses do seem to be largely cosmetic.)

But rather than lavishing you with all these extra items the second you boot up the game, the Ultimate Edition apparently gives us access to them as GTA 6 progresses – just like how additional content should unlock over the course of a game, whether or not you've spent extra real money to get access to it. Most GTA games have featured some variation on the rags-to-riches storyline, and I'd definitely prefer for Jason and Lucia to spend a little more time in their rags era before all this extra content comes through.

But while this all addresses one big problem with deluxe editions, I have one other notable concern: why is any of this locked behind a $20 paywall in the first place? Certainly, that seems to be the community's bigger concern with the Ultimate Edition. A pair of vehicle mod shops, a clothing store, a tattoo shop, and a salon are all exclusive to this version.

Rockstar's press material doesn't make clear whether features like vehicle customization or, uh, facial hair are exclusive to these Ultimate Edition shops, or if these locations simply offer some unique items for personalization. The answer to that question will likely affect how much goodwill there is toward the upgrade, but let's be real: after a 13-year wait, plenty of fans will be willing to pay any price to get as much GTA 6 as they can.

I haven't yet decided whether I'm opting for the $100 version – in part because of just how much I question the value of slicing off content like this – but the news that everything it contains is actually gated over the course of the game has taken the wind out of my initial "absolutely not" reaction. And I don't know, isn't there something charming about Jason in that dirtbag mullet?

After all this waiting, here's hoping GTA 6 stands among the best GTA games of all time.

Games industry analyst Mat Piscatella says that despite the controversy, GTA 6 being a code-in-a-box release will likely not have any impact on its sales.

Rockstar Games finally confirmed the GTA 6 price ahead of pre-orders going live at midnight on June 25 (so if you're in New Zealand, you can already pre-order it), and despite fears it would end up running players $100, it's going to follow Mario Kart World's price, releasing at $80 (although with exclusive content locked behind the Ultimate Edition, it'll likely be $100 for a lot of people).

However, one big source of negativity is the news that GTA 6 will not have a proper physical edition. Yes, the game will appear on store shelves, but it's going to be nothing more than a code in a box – not even a Nintendo-style key on a disc. But despite uproar from fans, Piscatella – senior director and video game industry advisor at Circana – reckons that outrage isn't really going to move the needle.

Anyways, devil's advocate here, but given the % of PS5/XBS consoles out there without a disc drive one could argue code in box may provide a better opportunity for retailers, particularly those that don't sell used.In any case, can't say this changes anything regarding total sales expectations.

— @matpiscatella.bsky.social (@matpiscatella.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-06-26T13:14:13.486Z

Posting on BlueSky, Piscatella says: "Devil's advocate here, but given the % of PS5/XBS consoles out there without a disc drive one could argue code in box may provide a better opportunity for retailers, particularly those that don't sell used." He adds, "In any case, can't say this changes anything regarding total sales expectations."

He also reacts to a ResetEra post querying if any physical game collectors will boycott GTA 6 due to its lack of physical release, saying, "Any time you hear 'boycott' when it comes to a video game it's time to raise the forecast."

Obviously GTA 6 is going to sell millions regardless, but the digital-only release is a massive disappointment. Not only does it hurt physical game collectors and preservation going forwards, but it's likely going to result in confusion for any unaware parents buying the game for their too-young-to-be-playing-it children for Christmas (who will then be met with an undoubtedly massive download). It also effectively allows Rockstar to control the entire market on GTA 6, as no one will be able to trade in their copy of GTA 6 or sell it second-hand.

GTA 6 isn't $100, but its real price proves games are only going to get more expensive.

GTA 6 developer Rockstar Games has unveiled plans for its $100 Ultimate Edition, but fans are unhappy with some of the features locked behind the more expensive version.

Earlier today we got perhaps our biggest info dump about GTA 6 to date, with Rockstar Games dropping details about the GTA 6 price, finally confirming that yes, it will be more expensive than most games with its $79.99 price, but won't be $100 like some feared. But Rockstar also announced the GTA 6 Ultimate Edition which will run you $99.99, and features a bunch of cosmetics and other stuff you expect to see in these expensive editions.

However, alongside the news that GTA 6 physical copies being a code in a box, Rockstar fans aren't exactly happy with this news, as the details of the Ultimate Edition also revealed that some features will be paywalled behind this more expensive edition. Car mod shops One-Eyed Willie's and Rideout Customs, clothing store Stock 305, hair salon Sara's Unisex Salon, and tattoo shop Electric Fang Tattoo all say they are "only open for business with the Ultimate Edition."

On top of that, there's also going to be some exclusive side missions. One sees you "raid the compound of one of Southside Vice City's loudest and most socially active gangs and escape safely to score some special items and distinct contraband," while another has you "track down a variety of abandoned classic and work-in-progress project cars and revitalize them to their former glory in this special commission from eccentric collector and local fixer, Wyman."

Over on the GTA subreddit, fans aren't happy with the amount of content locked behind the GTA 6 Ultimate Edition. Rather than excitement over the new details, the top post on the subreddit at the time of writing reads, "Rockstar I love you and all but locking content behind editions of the game like this is pretty egregious. This shouldn't be things you hide behind an ultimate edition of the game for players who just want to buy the basic game." Another user adds, "That's a huge red flag for me. Remember it's a SOLO GAME, this is about STORY MODE."

Meanwhile others are comparing it to GTA 4, which had everything included in the base game and then two big expansions. Elsewhere, some are seeing this as a symptom of how successful GTA Online was for GTA 5, with one user saying, "It was a huge mistake to support GTAO. It has spilled out onto single player too now." Others are now worried about what GTA Online is going to look like in GTA 6 when it comes to microtransactions: "Online is gonna be shark card central…"

Elsewhere, people fear what it might mean for the quality of the campaign, with one user saying "I won't be surprised if this game has the shortest and simplest singleplayer campaign of any GTA game and is completely focused on multiplayer and Shark Cards." We'll just have to wait and see, but it's certainly put a damper on today's news for some.

Possible new GTA 6 details continue to come early from European retailers as another says Rockstar's next game has performance and quality modes, but I'm not buying it.

Sony is saying GTA 6 will be best experienced on the PS5, and considering there's no PC version, that's a pretty low bar.

GTA 6 pre-orders are officially set to open at midnight in whatever time zone you're in (players in New Zealand are already able to put money down for the open-world game), and to celebrate we got a massive blowout of info from Rockstar Games. We found out the GTA 6 price, details about the GTA 6 Ultimate Edition, and less exciting news like GTA 6 physical copies being a code in a box, and no GTA Online at launch.

But outside of Rockstar's big blowout, Sony released its own GTA 6 post onto the PlayStation Blog from SIE's senior vice president of marketing, Mary Yee, titled "Grand Theft Auto 6 plays best on PS5 November 19." Which, first off, of course Sony would say. The company isn't exactly going to tell you it's better on Xbox, is it? However, it somewhat backs this up with very vague details about how the game will use the PS5 hardware.

"PS5 puts you in the center of the game world with the DualSense wireless controller reacting to your actions and bringing the sights, sounds, and sensations of Jason and Lucia's story into the palm of your hands," the post explains while explaining the generic details of the DualSense we've had since 2020.

Sony is also hyping up its 3D audio, saying "you can surround yourself in the distinct soundscapes of Leonida. From the streets of Vice City to the moments that unfold all across the state, this highly accurate audio positioning enhances your perception, helping to bring this world to life around you in unmatched ways."

At the same time, it's a pretty open goal right? In the absence of an Xbox Series X Pro, the PS5 Pro is the most powerful console currently available, and given there won't be a PC version of the game for another year from its launch at least, obviously PS5 is going to be the best place for it. But I suppose being able to advertise "GTA 6 is best on PS5" is going to be a solid marketing move for anyone looking to pick up a console for Rockstar's latest.

Possible new GTA 6 details continue to come early from European retailers as another says Rockstar's next game has performance and quality modes, but I'm not buying it

Rockstar has just confirmed that GTA 6 pre-orders are going live very soon, midnight local on July 25. What are we supposed to do while we wait, aside from marvel at the fact that the GTA 6 price is a shockingly reasonable $80? Why don't we dig into some of the first GTA 6 gameplay features!

While there's no sign of the third Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer, Rockstar has been kind enough to drop more than 60 new GTA 6 screenshots and new gameplay details. I'm going to break those down into categories for you all below, so all you need to do is slide through the galleries to see them all.

Rockstar may have shown a little of Leonida's scale, we haven't actually had that much info on what we'll be able to do within it. Well now we have a better sense of what vehicles we'll be able to drive beyond the confirmed GTA 6 cars, what activities we'll be able to do across the GTA 6 map, and first details on the depth of the character, weapon, and car customization. There's a lot to dive into, so let's get to it!

Jason has a beachfront Safehouse

We've long suspected that the beachfront property seen in the GTA 6 trailer would be a primary location for Jason, but it's now confirmed that this is officially referred to in-game as 'Jason's Safehouse'. This will be a location for you to hold multiple vehicles, such as the Dinka Enduro motorcycle, Crest Kayak, and Vapid Ganado pickup – all of which are bonuses included in the Ultimate Edition of the game. It's likely that you'll also be able to fix Jason's fashion here too, given mention elsewhere of extensive character customization options. Whether Jason will have other safehouses across Leonida remains to be seen.

Vehicle Customization and Mods confirmed

The Ultimate Edition will unlock two exclusive vehicle customization destinations, but it's likely that there will be far more across Vice City and beyond. We now know that a "wide selection of artistic and performance-based vehicle mods" are supported, with mention of being able to alter "detailed interiors, exquisite rims, and donk stylings." There's also mention in the pre-order info drop of certain cars having unique cab spoiler, rear aerials, and special liveries. What this points to is GTA 6 having extensive car customization features, giving you the freedom to tailor motorcycles, muscle cars, off-road riders, and more to your heart's content – so long as you've got the cash to burn.

Classic Car Collection Activities confirmed

The first in-game GTA 6 activity has been confirmed! We now know that you'll be able to complete a 'Classic Car Collection' by tracking down a variety of "abandoned classic and work-in-progress project cars" across the open world. Once located, you'll be able to revitalize them to their former glory and make them your own as part of a special commission project from a character named Wyman – who Rockstar describes as being an "eccentric collector and local fixer." There's four vehicles exclusive to the Ultimate Edition, but there's clearly far more out there to be found.

Weapon Customization confirmed

GTA 5 introduced pretty solid weapon customization features, so it's no surprise that Rockstar is pushing the feature for the sequel. As part of various Ultimate Edition bonuses, it's confirmed that some of the exclusive weapons will feature customized grips, various engravings, and different scopes. This is almost certainly just scratching the surface, but we'll have to wait to learn more. Another little detail here, it does seem that Jason and Lucia's weapons-of-choice are pistols and revolvers, and that Ammu-Nation stores will once again be a hub of sorts for weapon changes.

Personal Garages and weapons lockers

We now know that there will be Personal Garages spread all over Leonida. Each Personal Garage comes equipped with a weapons locker that can be used to "customize your loadout for any occasion", as well as a secure place to deposit stolen goods. It's currently unclear how you'll be able to access (or whether you'll need to purchase) Personal Garages, but it's good to know that we'll be able to tweak Jason/Lucia without needing to drive all the way back to a safehouse.

You'll be able to fence stolen items in GTA 6

Another activity that's confirmed for GTA 6: You can fence stolen items. We know that this game will be a more traditional crime story, with Jason and Lucia dragged into a conspiracy after a heist gone wrong. There will be at least one "local Fence" who will "accept most stolen goods at a reasonably discounted rate." You'll naturally attract a lot of attention (and police presence) while holding hot items, so these can also be stored securely in a Stash Box at any of your Personal Garages or Safehouses.

Extensive character customization

A big part of the Ultimate Edition is the arrival of exclusive clothing stores and capsule collections. What this tells us is that GTA 6 will have big character customization features. Outfits, apparel, accessories, and tattoos – we'll be able to bring our own style to Jason and Lucia. In addition, it's also confirmed that you'll be able to style each character's hairstyle, and alter Jason's facial hair and Lucia's makeup and nails. You'll also be able to change up ink for each character, with tattoos for your arms, legs, and back.

You'll interact with local gangs

If you pick up the Ultimate Edition of GTA 6, you'll be able to secure some "special items and distinct contraband" by raiding the PTT Youngin$ Illegal Goods Store in Southside Vice City. The PTT Youngin$ are a prominent gang across Leonida, weed farmers and dealers. The fact that GTA 6 has a gang that can be specifically targeted and raided, speaks to the game supporting a feature to attack other criminal elements. Given that we also now know that GTA 6 has stash boxes for stolen items and local fences to offload items too, it seems likely that 'special contraband' from gangs will be a lucrative form of money making – Ultimate Edition or not!

Will Tommy Vercetti's legacy loom large?

While there's a chance that this is just a nice easter egg for fans of GTA 3: Vice City, the Ultimate Edition does make mention of a 'Vercetti Estate'. Now, the The Vintage Vice City Pack (which is included with all digital purchases of GTA 6 made prior to November 20) does give you an exclusive weapon pattern that'll let you more overtly channel the original Vice City kingpin, but it's confirmation that the Vercetti Estate being an accessible location which makes me wonder whether we'll learn what Tommy Vercetti has been up to in the 40 in-game years between GTA 3 and GTA 6.

Will we be able to go fishing?

I'm not super convinced on this one, but I'll mention it here for the sake of being thorough. One of the exclusive Ultimate Edition items is the Shitzu Squalo – a rather large and lovely boat. The details for this vehicle mention the special Squalo can be docked, and that it can be made "ocean-ready" thanks to an on-board weapons crate. The thing that caught my eye though? This line: "Perfect for casting in Gambit Bay and reeling in catches of all sorts." Does this mean that we'll be able to go fishing, or is it simply teasing that the criminal underground of Leonida likes to use murky waters as a dumping ground?

GTA 6 lands on PS5 and Xbox Series X on November 19. It's a key new game of 2026, although it sounds as if it'll be launching as single-player only experience.

Rockstar Games has confirmed that GTA 6 will be following in the footsteps of Red Dead Redemption 2 with a chapter-based story.

Ahead of GTA 6 pre-orders officially opening at midnight local time, a bunch of info was released about the upcoming open-world game on the Rockstar Games website. This included the GTA 6 price which is following in the footsteps of Mario Kart World at $80 – although considering many were worried it'd be $100, some see it as a bit of a relief. However, if you want to spend $100 on GTA 6, Rockstar also detailed the GTA 6 Ultimate Edition, which also revealed another detail about the game's story.

The open-world Rockstar games have typically been a stream of consciousness style of giving you content, feeding you one mission after another for a straight ride through the game. But with Rockstar's last game, Red Dead Redemption 2, the game was more deliberate by being split up into distinct chapters, typically focusing on one area of the map. And it looks like GTA 6 is taking that approach forward.

In the section about the Ultimate Edition, Rockstar notes that you won't get everything at once, saying "Ultimate Edition bonuses are threaded across all aspects of Jason and Lucia's story, with new items uncovered behind each chapter," confirming the chapter-based approach is returning.

Given that Red Dead Redemption 2 is undoubtedly the best story Rockstar has ever made, I'm glad to see it try this format with GTA. Although let's hope there aren't any chapters that are as much of a drag as Guarma was in Red Dead 2.

GTA 6 Online looks unlikely for launch as Rockstar refers to the game as a "single-player experience."

A European retailer has included a blurb about performance and quality modes on its GTA 6 store page, suggesting Rockstar Games' open-world title may feature the modes.

As spotted by a ResetEra user, Media Markt Poland included a now-deleted Q&A on its GTA 6 store page, which included the following: "By purchasing the console version, you can be sure that you are getting a product polished down to the smallest detail. GTA VI on next-generation consoles offers two graphics modes to choose from (Performance and Quality), support for DualSense controller features on PS5, providing realistic haptic feedback vibrations, and extremely fast loading screens thanks to the power of SSD storage."

Obviously, differing graphical modes have been a thing on consoles for about a decade now, since the advent of the PS4 Pro, so it's not a huge stretch to imagine any upcoming game would have it. However, it's mainly interesting since Rockstar's previous game, Red Dead Redemption 2, never featured these modes on the PS4 Pro or Xbox One X, or when played in backwards compatibility mode on PS5 and Xbox Series X. And given Rockstar is one of the more particular developers out there, it wouldn't be entirely shocking if the developer had balanced the game around a singular performance mode it deems the best way to play.

However, I don't really buy it. The store page Q&A sounds a bit generic, not to mention the opening line "By purchasing the console version," which would be a bit unnecessary since, as of right now, GTA 6 isn't coming to PC (obviously it will, but later for those sweet double dips). This could easily be a generic blurb for any current game as a placeholder, especially when there's no mention of the PS5 Pro.

That isn't to say the game won't have performance and quality modes, but I wouldn't take this retailer listing as gospel just yet.

The UK government has reportedly been paying employees to play GTA Online with random people to understand their "lived experience".

Rockstar Games is still keeping details about GTA 6's online mode under wraps, with the latest news seemingly confirming it will arrive after launch.

Ahead of GTA 6 pre-orders going live tomorrow, Rockstar has released a blowout of info about the upcoming open-world game. Most notably, the GTA 6 price, which has finally been confirmed to be in line with the Nintendo-led $80, with an Ultimate Edition arriving alongside it for $100, with pre-loads starting a week early. On top of that, Rockstar confirmed the rough news that GTA 6 physical copies are a code in a box, but very quietly hidden away in a press release is an unfortunate clue about GTA Online's next iteration.

In a Take-Two press release where the price was confirmed, it reads, "Grand Theft Auto 6 features a single-player experience set in the biggest, most immersive evolution of the series yet." The keywords there are "single-player," effectively confirming that when GTA 6 launches on November 19, 2026, a new version of GTA Online will not be coming alongside it.

We know a new GTA Online is on the way, thanks to court proceedings earlier this year, and given how much money GTA Online makes, and how much GTA 6 is going to make, it was pretty inevitable that it would be a thing in the upcoming game.

However, this isn't out of the ordinary for Rockstar anymore. It may be hard to remember now that it was 13 years ago, but GTA 5's iteration of GTA Online launched two weeks after the game's release. Whereas Red Dead Redemption 2's online component launched in beta around a month later, then fully launched around a year and a half later.

The UK government has reportedly been paying employees to play GTA Online with random people to understand their "lived experience".

Rockstar has finally revealed the GTA 6 price, ending plenty of chatter and speculation. While the cost does mean $80 at least, at the very least, you'll now be able to put the money you need aside for when the next Grand Theft Auto game releases this November.

As expected, Rockstar revealed the long-awaited GTA 6 news in a press release, detailing that the standard edition of GTA 6 will cost you $80 while the Ultimate Edition will cost $99.99. Interested? GTA pre-orders kick off at midnight local time today.

While we've had to wait until today to get the official word from Rockstar, there was some chatter over an early leak just recently. As we previously reported, a European retailer suggested a price range of €90 to €200, though a reliable dataminer quickly noted it was likely a placeholder. Now, though, we know it's not quite that bad, which is something.

So, why has the cost of GTA 6 been causing such a stir over the past few years? Some topics of conversation are evergreen – games are getting more expensive to make, so will those costs be passed down? If we're moving towards a new console genre, does that mean more expensive games? And so on.

What was particularly impactful, however, was Nintendo's pricing of Mario Kart World for the Nintendo Switch 2. To this day, picking up the racer will set you back $80. At the time, Nintendo ripping the band-aid off led plenty of gaming fans to wonder who would follow suit. Team Xbox flirted with the idea with The Outer Worlds 2 before running that decision back, and they aren't the only ones.

Regardless, a common thought that entered the brain of many was, 'if Nintendo can charge $80 for Mario Kart, then how much could Rockstar charge for one of the most-anticipated games of all time?' Not a thought many of us enjoy, for sure.

While plenty of analysts have been happy to float the possibility that GTA 6 could have hit the heights of a $100 price tag, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick had offered some assurance with several remarks, saying "our job is to charge way way way less of the value" of a game, and that the company typically aims to "deliver way more value than what we charge."

Of course, now that the GTA 6 price is set, fans will be able to decide for themselves if Rockstar is providing more value than what is being charged this November.

GTA 6 Online looks unlikely for launch as Rockstar refers to the game as a "single-player experience."

GTA 6 physical copies will be a code-in-a-box, Rockstar Games has confirmed, with them arriving on shelves a week early to allow for pre-loading.

Over on the Rockstar Games website, the studio shares a bunch of pre-order info for the open-world title, including the news that pre-orders will go live at midnight on June 25 and the GTA 6 price, which will cost $79.99, details about the Ultimate Edition (which will run you $99.99), and news of the pre-load. Alongside the pre-loading info, Rockstar revealed that physical copies of the game will be available in stores a week early, on November 12, 2026, to allow users to pre-load the game. Unfortunately, this comes with a major catch, as the description adds, "Physical copies of GTA 6 will contain a code that can be redeemed for the digital download of the game. A disk will not be included in the box."

Earlier this year, rumors emerged that Rockstar was going to delay physical copies of GTA 6, in order to avoid leaks in the same way some of its previous titles, and other high-profile releases like Resident Evil Requiem, have faced. However, Strauss Zelnick – CEO of Take-Two – denied this at the time, and I guess he was technically right.

It's clear now that Rockstar's plan to avoid leaks is to not even bother with physical copies of the game. Yes, you can buy the game in stores, but it's not a real physical edition. So if you were looking for a version of the game that will exist for years to come, or hoping to resell it after you finished the campaign, unfortunately, you're out of luck.

Hopefully, this is just a measure to avoid pre-launch leaks from Rockstar, and eventually, real physical copies make their way out there. It's a bit of a disappointing move for one of the biggest game releases of all time.

The UK government has reportedly been paying employees to play GTA Online with random people to understand their "lived experience".

GTA 6 pre-orders begin this week, which means we're mere hours away from confirmation on one of the biggest questions looming over Rockstar's open-world behemoth: how much is this thing gonna cost? Nintendo set a new precedent for $80 AAA games with Mario Kart World, and with GTA likely being the most expensive game ever made, fans are bracing for what could be the most expensive retail price tag for a video game ever.

A recent leak from a European retailer suggested the base version of GTA 6 could arrive at €89.99 (roughly $100), with the priciest SKU landing at €199.99 ($227), but a reliable insider has debunked those numbers as "random" placeholders not indicative of official Take-Two pricing. Still, analysts say they wouldn't be surprised to see those kinds of prices on GTA 6. It is GTA 6, after all.

Talking to Eurogamer, Circana analyst Mat Piscatella says the rumored leaked prices are both "possible and plausible", adding that Rockstar parent company Take-Two Interactive is in the advantageous position of being able to do "just about anything in regard to pricing" when it comes to GTA 6.

In any other situation, particularly in the economically turbulent world in which we live, most would be unwilling to accept such exorbitant prices for games, says The Game Business's Chris Dring, but "GTA 6 is not most games." He adds: "Fans know the value offered by a GTA. This is a game that will last a long time and will justify that level of cost for a lot of people."

Rockstar itself has dubbed GTA 6 "the largest game launch in history," and you could reasonably broaden that statement to include the entertainment industry more broadly, but that unprecedented anticipation and production budget needn't be proportionate to the game's price tag.

Certainly, if there's a game out there with enough momentum to ask people for $100 to play the most affordable version, it's GTA 6, but Take-Two could just as easily play the long game and lower that barrier of entry, potentially welcoming a whole new category of gamers who have yet to migrate over from last-gen consoles. GTA 6 will be exclusive to current-gen PlayStation and Xbox consoles at launch, with a PC date yet to be confirmed, so pricing the game closer to the current retail standard of $70 could make the cost of transitioning to PS5/Xbox Series X "more palatable," argues Dring, especially with recent price increases on gaming hardware across the board.

Another big strategic reason to keep GTA 6's price tag relatively low is GTA Online, what Alinea Analytics analyst Rhys Elliott says is "the real cash cow" in Take-Two's pocket. "Capping GTA 6's addressable audience at launch to squeeze the base price would be penny-wise and pound-foolish," he says. "They'd needlessly be limiting the top of the funnel that feeds the thing that actually prints money for a decade. And let's not forget there's a cost-of-living crisis. A higher floor hits exactly the players already feeling the squeeze."

With GTA 6 pre-orders starting on June 25, we only have a couple of days until we know for sure how much the game will cost, but it's interesting that there's no clear consensus from analysts at this juncture. I suppose with no other game launch to compare, it's uniquely difficult to predict Take-Two's strategy when it comes to pricing, but from the humble perspective of a player and critic, I'm holding out hope for a $70 base version so that as many people as possible can witness what will be, in Dring's words, "the entertainment event of the century."

GTA 6 trailer 3 hopes soar as YouTube jumps back into Rockstar's last trailer to tease it's going to be "busy" on pre-order day, but I think we already have our explanation

Thatgamecompany, the studio behind gems like Journey and Sky: Children of the Light, has always expressed itself through more zen video game experiences, it seems – or, at least, co-founder Jenova Chen certainly has.

Chen recalls when his game-making journey began back in 2005 in a new interview with GamesIndustry.biz, explaining that he needed money for his tuition… and the University of Southern California was offering a gaming innovation grant for a pitch "that was the opposite of what the mainstream media was condemning after the Columbine shooting."

In other words, the polar opposite of Rockstar Games' beloved Grand Theft Auto series.

The Thatgamecompany lead says as much. "I was like, 'What is the opposite of Grand Theft Auto San Andreas?'" The opposite was Cloud – a wholesome game revolving around a boy dreaming of flying while stuck in a hospital bed.

Chen (and fellow students) hoped to create a peaceful experience out of Cloud… which wasn't exactly common in the era of Assassin's Creed, Half-Life, Halo, Resident Evil, and, of course, GTA.

Nor was it popular – at least not with Valve, the mastermind company behind the likes of Half-Life 2 and the Portal games. Not according to Chen, anyway, who actually tried to pitch Cloud to the house of Steam himself.

"We pitched to pretty much every publisher you can imagine, including Valve," he admits. "Back in 2005, Valve was like, 'We only publish games with guns, our players like to shoot.'" Sounds about right for the time, honestly.

It's important to note that Cloud did end up finding its way to the public, and you can still download it for free online. As for Valve… well, it's still known best for shooters like the Counter-Strike and Half-Life series, but I'd say there's nothing quite as out there as GTA under its belt.

And, as it stands, games with a violent edge continue to prove popular – heck, just take a look at all of the hype surrounding GTA 6 and its upcoming launch.

That's not to say that cozy games – like Thatgamecompany's own lineup – haven't found a home in today's world. They're bigger than ever before, with roughly 80% of my own Steam library being some shape or form of relaxing experience.

GTA 6 trailer 3 hopes soar as YouTube jumps back into Rockstar's last trailer to tease it's going to be "busy" on pre-order day, but I think we already have our explanation.

GTA 6 pre-orders are going live this week, and fans reckon that YouTube may have inadvertently confirmed that we can expect the long-awaited Trailer 3 to arrive at the same time. I wouldn't be so sure, though.

Rockstar Games announced last week that GTA 6 pre-orders will go live on June 25, making its November 19 release date feel more real than ever. At this point, it's also been over a year since Trailer 2 – we didn't get one with the pre-order announcement – and most fans expect we'll get our next look at the game this week, coinciding with the devs asking fans to splash their cash.

The theory already makes sense – certainly a lot more sense than some of the wild speculation we've seen from fans over the last few years – but as highlighted on Reddit, some believe YouTube has outright confirmed it. A new comment posted by the site's official account on GTA 6 Trailer 2 reads: "Consider us busy June 25th."

So, the biggest video-sharing platform is hinting that it's going to be busy because of GTA 6… after the second trailer hit 19 million views in its first four hours? You can understand why some believe that Trailer 3 is "most likely confirmed" for June 25.

Yeah trailer 3 most likely confirmed for June 25th from r/GTA6

"Seems legit. They need to scale YT servers up to accomodate all the traffic for the new trailer," one Reddit user responds, as another writes: "They definitely wouldn't have commented that for no reason."

Unfortunately, though, there's another perfectly reasonable explanation for this, and it's the one I'm most personally inclined to believe – a corporate account is simply wanting to jump in on the pre-order hype. We already know that date is when pre-orders go live, so it's not like a brand new one has been pulled out of nowhere, and it's not uncommon for brands to humanize themselves a little like this.

There's probably some real truth to it, too – I'd be surprised if a whole bunch of YouTube employees weren't pre-ordering GTA 6 that day.

With that said, as others have pointed out, the idea of a new trailer arriving on pre-order day seems fairly likely regardless of whether YouTube is teasing it or not. As always, of course, please hype responsibly.

Rumored GTA 6 pre-order prices are "just placeholders," reliable leaker claims: "Those prices are random."

With GTA 6 pre-orders right around the corner, one prolific leaker claims that certain rumored prices for Rockstar Games's upcoming behemoth aren't actually accurate, which could be good news if you were fearing for your wallet.

Over the last few days, fans spotted that French retailer Fnac had posted five mysterious listings on its site, named RS1, RS2, RS3, RS4, and RS4, all releasing on November 19 – GTA 6's release date. Folks quickly assumed these could be placeholder listings for the upcoming GTA 6 pre-orders, with the different prices reflecting different editions, from the standard game to a pricier collector's edition.

Either way, it appeared that the game wasn't going to come cheap. The lowest price was €89.99, while the highest was €199.99, suggesting that even a basic copy of the game with no extras would be more expensive than most games on the market. Well, according to reliable leaker Billbil-kun, these listed prices don't mean anything at all.

"Those SKUs are just placeholders bcz EAN codes (like UPC in US) aren't belonging to Take2 traditional games prefixes," Billbil-kun writes on Twitter. Regardless of whether you keep up with the technicalities of European Article Numbers or not, the point is simple: "Those prices are random ones," the leaker claims.

Billbil-kun "can't do much to get real prices" right now, but based on their track record of accurate leaked prices, special editions, and more for countless other games, it's definitely worth considering their perspective here. I'd imagine that there's still a chance that the prices could end up being correct, but it sounds like that'd be a coincidence more than anything else.

One thing is for sure: we don't have long to wait to find out. Last week, Rockstar Games announced that pre-orders for GTA 6 will go live on June 25, and people are going to need to know how much they're spending to put those pre-orders in. Fears of a $100 price for GTA 6 have been lingering for months at this point – it'll be interesting to see if those end up coming to pass, or if Rockstar surprises us all with the deal of the year.

We've been waiting so long for GTA 6 that someone just found another GTA 4 swingset glitch after 18 years.

It may not seem like it, but a streamer playing Grand Theft Auto 4 and watching their character get flung into outer space after crashing their motorcycle is one of the most significant things to happen to the game in the last 18 years.

GTA streamer Gtamen successfully found a "swing glitch" or "swingset glitch" (parks tend to be where it happens the most) that nobody else has ever found before. They were casually riding their bike down a pier when they drove into a tight spot between a gate and a pole. As soon as they got close, their character was instantly killed and catapulted into the sky.

Gtamen watched this happen in disbelief asking his chat, "What the fuck was that?" Then, of course, he went and tried it again. "Oh, it's consistent," he said, watching his character take flight once again.

"I literally just unironically found a new fucking swingset glitch or a launch glitch in this game!" he exclaimed.

Most notably, Gtamen's character wasn't killed the second time he performed the glitch, which is rare if you're not doing it in a car. That doesn't necessarily make it particularly useful for anything, but it's a neat occurrence that other swing glitch locations don't always offer.

The swing glitch is one of GTA 4's most famous glitches and one that I'm pretty sure I've encountered while playing the game. Honestly, before seeing the clip I had no idea that it was repeatable and something the community has been cataloging for years.

I guess that's what happens when you have nothing else to do but wait for the next GTA game. GTA 5 almost entirely removed the glitch, which just leaves GTA 6. We can only hope that Rockstar will save some spots that'll turn your character into a rocket when it's out in November.

The UK government has reportedly been paying employees to play GTA Online with random people to understand their "lived experience"

GTA fans rejoice as Rockstar Games is keeping one of the series long-running traditions alive with the box art for GTA 6.

Rockstar Games released the first bits of info for GTA 6 we've had in over a year, since the last massive trailer dropped, but unfortunately, this didn't manifest in a third trailer for the game. Instead, it was news that pre-orders for the game will start next week, alongside the reveal of its box art. Plus, a short clip of Vice City itself was uploaded to the website, showcasing the Florida environment in more detail than before.

Since the 3D era of GTA started, covers have been the same, with the collage-style cover design making its debut in GTA 3 (albeit with other regions getting unique art for that one) before returning in every game since. And as fans have noticed throughout the series, every single one of these games has featured a helicopter in the top left – the sole exception being the DS spinoff Chinatown Wars, which didn't actually feature helicopters as it returned to the top-down perspective.

And as you can see here, Rockstar hasn't forgotten about its tradition despite the 13-year wait between games, with the GTA 6 box art featuring a helicopter in the top left. And fans are excited, too, as the top comment on the GTA subreddit post unveiling the cover is "The helicopter is back on the corner!"

Lack of a trailer aside, the good news here is that if pre-orders are starting, we hopefully won't see another delay (or at least not a major one). The other bit of good news is that Rockstar didn't mess up with the cover art for the game and kept one of the game's oldest traditions alive.

The UK government has reportedly been paying employees to play GTA Online with random people to understand their "lived experience".

Leave it to Rockstar. Today's reveal of the GTA 6 cover and the announcement that pre-orders will go live next week would've been news enough, but the devs have also gone and given us our best look at Vice City yet, thanks to a very brief video clip quietly added to the game's official website.

That clip offers a brief flyover of Vice City, pulling away from the downtown skyscrapers over an industrial park, harbor, and apparent apartment complexes on the other side of the bay. Most enticing about this clip are the vehicles, including an array of helicopters, planes, luxury yachts, freight boats, and more that we'll presumably be able to hijack in-game.

You can watch the clip below, or head over to the official website to pore over it in its full glory, going frame by frame with each click of your mouse wheel. I guess Rockstar knows we're all thirsty for details this far out from the last trailer, so the studio's giving us the tools we need to make the most of this one.

moving shot of Vice City in Grand Theft Auto VI

— @wario64.bsky.social (@wario64.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-06-18T15:02:10.076Z

This actually appears to be an opposite view of the same stretch of downtown Vice City that we previously saw in a screenshot last year – the ferris wheel makes clear that it's the same location. Players have already been piecing the GTA 6 map together for ages, and I suspect that they'll just about have central Vice City all mapped by the time pre-orders go live.

Those pre-orders will go live on June 25, as Rockstar confirmed alongside today's cover art reveal. That means we're finally going to have an answer to arguably the most burning question about GTA 6: just how much is it going to cost?

For all the new games of 2026 and beyond, you know where to click.

GTA 6 pre-orders will open Thursday, June 25, developer Rockstar Games announced today.

Rockstar also released the cover art for Grand Theft Auto 6 in a dedicated reveal trailer – the first significant movement from the game in quite some time. Here's the full GTA 6 cover art:

Rockstar clarifies: "Pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto VI will officially begin on June 25 on digital storefronts and at other select retailers."

The cover art for GTA 6 follows Rockstar convention. Graphic novel-style illustrations fill tiled chunks of the cover with character and literal characters, with my favorite being the bi ol' alligator smack in the middle. That's the real main character, right there. The expected fleet of vehicles – helicopters, bikes, speedboats, motorcycles – and sexy people complete a wreath of madness below protagonists Lucia and Jason.

The main differences compared to GTA 5's cover are the more tropical theme and the numbering. Rockstar's blown out the Roman numerals for six and made them an element of the background this time. And let us reiterate: there's a gator this time.

We're still awaiting word on GTA 6's pricing and special editions. Speculative talk of a $100 baseline for GTA 6 has generally died down, but many are still bracing – and, purportedly behalf of the whole struggling games industry, even arguing – for an $80 sticker price.

Owner Take-Two will surely seek to balance profit per copy sold with plans for GTA 6 online, which will want to bring in as many players as possible for the long-tail monetization that has really earned Rockstar its billions.

"I don't know where GTA Online performance goes after the release of GTA 6," says Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, but he sure doesn't expect it to drop off.

The UK government has reportedly been paying employees to play GTA Online with random people to understand their "lived experience".

As if GTA 6 wasn't already causing enough of a disruption in the video game industry this fall (you know, with all the developers and publishers hoping to avoid Rockstar's massive release), it appears its launch will impact other industries, too.

What industries might those be? Well, the automotive industry comes to mind – because, erm, why not.

In a new online post, Burger Motorsports explains that it'll undergo a company-wide closure this November… thanks to the release of Grand Theft Auto 6, of course. Yes, it's real, and it's as amusing as it sounds.

The announcement reads that "Burger Motorsports will be observing a temporary company-wide operational pause on Thursday, November 19, 2026."

It continues: "After reviewing multiple employee scheduling conflicts, management has determined that normal business operations may be impacted due to the release of Grand Theft Auto 6. Several team members have already notified management that they will be unavailable, unreachable, and/or 'in Vice City' for the duration of the day."

A completely understandable disruption in services, if you ask me… and totally necessary.

When will the chaos end, though? Burger Motorsports has an answer. "Normal business operations are expected to resume once employees have completed their initial exploration, finished at least one mission, and returned to reality," according to the company – and no, the team is not sorry, but it does "appreciate your patience and understanding during this unprecedented cultural event."

Yep… cultural event, y'all.

GTA 6 is so big that its launch is now being described as a cultural event. I mean, I can't say I'm all that surprised – heck, folks have been waiting over a decade for Rockstar's next game, after all.

Comments see fans finding humor in Burger Motorsports' upcoming day (or week?) off, with one joking, "We got a GTA 6 holiday before GTA 6." Another adds, "W company." I can even see people who (presumably) work there celebrating.

So, there you have it – the GTA 6 release isn't only having an impact on new games and their creators' planned launches… it has also apparently reached the car industry. Where will it go next? I suppose we've still got five months to find out.

GTA 6 will sell 46 million copies at launch, investment bank theorizes using the power of Rockstar's past launches and a very feral Reddit community

Rockstar has revealed that GTA Online's next criminal caper, The Kortz Center Heist, is coming in July, and better yet – anyone who owns GTA 5 on the PS4 or Xbox One is getting a free upgrade.

In a new blog post, Rockstar says GTA Online will be "brimming with ways to prepare" for the new heist in the coming weeks. "Whether you're looking to refine your real estate portfolio with a Mansion property to ultimately host your own solo Heists or gearing up as part of a larger crew, stay tuned for special events featuring bonus GTA$ rewards, record-breaking discounts, and opportunities to claim rare and exclusive treasures through the Fine Art Collector program," the post reads.

As for the heist itself, Rockstar says you'll need to add the Art Studio to your mansion before scoping out the Kortz Center and deciding how to tackle your multi-stage heist so that you might come away with plenty of priceless works that might fetch you a small fortune in GTA bucks.

And that's not all. Rockstar also says that, starting tomorrow, anyone who owns the PS4 or digital Xbox One version of GTA 5 will be able to upgrade to the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions at no additional cost. If you actually own one of those consoles, you'll get to enjoy plenty of benefits, such as technical improvements, Hao's Special Works high-performance vehicles and upgrades, and more.

Amusingly, I'm already seeing some people caught out, thinking that Rockstar might have been announcing something GTA 6-shaped here, but no – the likes of GTA and Red Dead Online continue as Rockstar aims to keep the lights on. Thankfully, with GTA 6 marketing kicking off in the summer, you won't be waiting long for your turn.

GTA 6 will sell 46 million copies at launch, investment bank theorizes using the power of Rockstar's past launches and a very feral Reddit community.

It's no secret that the GTA 6 launch might end up standing as one of the biggest game releases of all time – but just how big will it be?

Well, investment bank Piper Sandler (via Wccftech) believes Rockstar Games will manage around 46 million sales on day one. That's a massive number in any context, but it's especially big for a new release – even if that release is of the AAA variety. So, how did Piper Sandler come up with such a high figure?

Well, it used the power of past big title launches, including some from Rockstar itself… and, erm, Reddit.

Put simply, it estimates the number of weekly visitors to the GTA 6 subreddit at release, and then take its current weekly visitors – about five months now before the long-awaited November 19 launch. They then apply historical multipliers from other game drops to transform this traffic on Reddit into a sales figure.

It's… a lot, but it makes sense if you break it all down into smaller numbers for digestion. For example, as Piper Sandler assumes that r/GTA6 will hit about 1.3 million weekly visitors when Rockstar's new game launches and applies a 35x multiplier, this leads to an estimate of about 46 million sales or so.

Alternatively, when the bank uses the subreddit's 870,000 weekly visitors – the current number – and a 53x median multiplier, it reaches that same 46 million figure. And, no, Piper Sandler doesn't think its assumptions are too extreme. The subreddit growth it assumes for the GTA 6 launch would, in fact, be conservative if compared to past average visitor count hikes.

Piper Sandler isn't only using Reddit for its estimates, either. Its report includes a table that analyzes 18 other AAA games from the last eight years, like Red Dead Redemption 2 and Cyberpunk 2077.

It's hard to imagine GTA 6 beating out so many genre giants… even its own predecessors. Heck, GTA 5 only managed 11.21 million copies on its launch day some 13 years ago – but the hype has undeniably grown over time.

If Piper Sandler's estimates ring true and GTA 6 boasts 46 million sales at launch, as Wccftech notes, that means it might net over $3 billion on release. That's quite the revenue. Previously, analysts predicted that GTA 6 will double GTA 5 and make $3.2 billion in its first year – not its first day.

Only time will tell how the game truly performs, but I'd argue that it'll stand as an impressive launch regardless of which prediction turns out to be on par with reality – this is GTA 6 we're talking about here, after all.

GTA 6 really is releasing in November, Take-Two boss insists while giving out free business advice: "Everything worth doing is hard and takes a long time."

If the game you want to play is taking years to come out, why not make your own version? An entrepreneurial developer is doing just that for GTA 6, and if that doesn't sound wild enough, he's hoping to outdo Rockstar to market as well. May we all have such confidence.

The creative spirit in question is known as Ziwen, and he's started posting about the progress on his Grand Theft Auto 6-like on Twitter. "Day one of building GTA 6. Still feels fake typing that out," he writes in a post, with some extremely early footage of the project.

"Spent a couple hours getting the whole project structured and pushed to the repo," he says. "Sandbox is up and running."

True enough, the video contains a large blue object wandering around a 3D plain, with a couple of platforms to jump at. It's basic, but functional, and at one point or another Rockstar's newest urban playground would've looked something like this.

Ziwen's game is being built using Godot, because "it's community-owned, so nobody can pull an EPIC on us later and rewrite the deal once we're invested." There won't be a studio or publisher, according to him, "just whoever shows up," with a request for volunteers

He then makes his lofty ambitions public: "Beat the real GTA 6 to launch. Ambitious, probably stupid, doing it anyway."

Later updates include a large amount of generative AI assets for Rockstar-esque news clips and the like. The latest, from day seven, mentions a move to Unity, because "if you're serious about triple-A, get on a real engine. so here we are."

The gameplay sections involve running around an actual neighborhood, quite a ways removed from this thing's origins. "First time this actually looks like GTA instead of a prototype of it," Ziwen proclaims.

I wouldn't go that far, but racing what may very well be the biggest video game launch ever through gen-AI and vibe coding is an audacious move I kind of enjoy. Something to keep an eye on, just to see what eventually emerges.

GTA 6 really is releasing in November, Take-Two boss insists while giving out free business advice: "Everything worth doing is hard and takes a long time"

GTA 6 is really, truly on track for its November release date, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick reiterates, in words we can only hope don't end up aging poorly (again).

Zelnick was approached for an interview out on the street by TikTok account The School of Hard Knocks, who jumps straight to the point by asking the Take-Two CEO how he got rich. The Rockstar Games owner is initially confused how anyone could tell just by looking: "I look like everyone else on the street, I'm just wearing a blue suit," he says, wearing a black suit that's had me questioning whether we've got another white and gold or blue and black dress situation on our hands for the last 30 minutes.

Anyway, regardless of how the interviewer deduced it, obviously, Zelnick is rather rich, and he points to a niche series you may or may not have heard of – Grand Theft Auto. Directly questioned when GTA 6 is launching, Zelnick reiterates the same date we've been told since last November – "November 19."

Why has it taken so long, though? "The team at Rockstar really does seek to do something that's never been done before. That's really hard and it takes a long time," Zelnick says. It's nothing he's not said before – back in May 2024, the Take-Two boss teased that "it's about creating an experience that no one has seen before, and Rockstar Games seeks perfection." No pressure on the devs, then.

Zelnick is also asked to share some business advice, to which he says: "Never compromise your integrity, it's the only thing you have." You "unquestionably" have to keep your word when it comes to business, he reiterates. Hopefully, that's an additional good sign for GTA 6 meeting its November release date and truly being as good as Zelnick says.

While he's not talking about GTA 6 specifically, he also says that while "everyone's looking for an overnight success," he finds that "the only overnight successes are someone else's," and "everything worth doing is hard and takes a long time." Given that we're approaching 13 years since the launch of GTA 5… yeah, that tracks.

At this point, I don't blame anyone who's still hesitant to believe the latest release date for GTA 6. After all, this is the same guy who once told us "we feel really good" about the old 2025 release window. Perhaps folks will feel a bit more confident when Rockstar Games kicks off the game's marketing in earnest, something which is apparently supposed to begin sometime this summer.

GTA 6 had "all the studios in the world" planning around the Rockstar Games behemoth, A Plague Tale dev says.

Going by previous installments, it's safe to say there will be a plethora of ways to approach GTA 6. You could tackle the main story, or just explore at your own free will, or role-play, or do whatever else takes your fancy. It's all valid, and Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser believes that's the strength of this kind of game.

Speaking at the Tribeca Festival in New York City, Houser, who served as a producer and narrative lead at Rockstar for years, explains his perspective on whether you can play an open-world game wrong. "If someone enjoyed a game, that's great. If you can’t finish a story, but you loved it in other ways: Great, I don't care," he says, as transcribed by IGN.

"I mean, I would like it if you finish the story because I spent ages on it.
If you enjoyed it, that's enough for you," he adds. Houser then points out that since the jump to PlayStation 2, Rockstar's actually incorporated various elements to pull players toward the main story instead of completely abandoning it for rampages or side missions.

"The whole point of an open world game is we provide guides. We want you to experience the story," Houser explains. "Our goal was always - from GTA 3 onwards - to try and get more and more people to finish the story. And the numbers went up and up; they used to be pretty level.
But ultimately, that's up to the player."

If people prefer "mucking around" and "messing with the systems," then the game's still a success, because the mechanics are what make the release what it is. "The most fun thing about the game isn't any rubbish we write, it's the systems that we make," he muses.

Both the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption games are gigantic playgrounds, and what gives them longevity is the sense of freedom. The main plot is there and satisfying enough, but it's the fact you can just as easily go off on one, or poke around the map endlessly, on a total whim that makes them feel distinct.

Houser doubles down by stating player choice is crucial to the entire dynamic. "[What's] always gonna be the most fun is being in this world, seeing what happens when you jump off this building, when you punch that person, you drive that car, when you interact with this thing, or that thing, whatever way," he adds.

"That's always gonna have a sort of magical quality to it, and we are on some level on the story side, just the icing on the cake," he says to finish. "We can't be precious about what they do. We can encourage them to play it the way we want them to play it. But we have to give them agency.”

GTA 6 had "all the studios in the world" planning around the Rockstar Games behemoth, A Plague Tale dev says

Former Rockstar technical director Obbe Vermeij says that stealth missions were something the team regretted about GTA San Andreas.

Over on Twitter, a fan asked Vermeij about a silenced M9 Beretta pistol found in the files of GTA 4, as well as two apparently cut missions featuring scripted stealth mechanics. The former Rockstar dev says that while "I don't know about the 2 missions," he explains, "My recollection is that stealth was specifically one of the things we regretted adding to [San Andreas] as we ended up stretching ourselves too thin. So I thought stealth was never pursued in GTA4."

However, he doesn't deny that it was possibly in the game at some point, adding "there were experiments going on all the time that I didn't know about." GTA 4 was already a pretty dense game by the time it came out, and over the years, a number of cut things or other rumors have emerged, such as a ferry that was "ditched" as well as a rumor about GTA 4 getting zombies, which Vermeij previously said was "probably an experiment that didn't work out."

Granted, Vermeij also said previously that he "didn’t like GTA 4 that much" at launch because "we had to sacrifice so much in terms of gameplay," so while he was probably happy to see the back of stealth, it may have been something that was cut in pursuit of the game's more realistic tone compared to San Andreas and 5.

Saying that, GTA 5 did have some stealthy missions, such as stealing cars for Simeon, and a number of missions featured in GTA Online. Not to mention some of the heists can be done somewhat quietly (at first, transporting a vault isn't really stealthy). So there's a chance that Rockstar's experiments went into the development of GTA 5.

"I don't know where GTA Online performance goes after the release of GTA 6," Take-Two boss says, but he doesn't expect it to decline.

As seemingly every game has decided to release in late September to avoid clashing with GTA 6, Palworld lead John "Bucky" Buckley jokes that he's going nuclear.

One common thread throughout the PlayStation State of Play earlier this week – and I suspect one we'll see throughout Summer Game Fest and the Xbox Games Showcase later this week – is that people really don't want to release around the same time as GTA 6. Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Control Resonant, and Silent Hill: Townfall are all set to release on September 24 and 25, while the following week has Rayman Legends Retold and Ace Combat 8. Meanwhile, November is almost completely devoid of game releases except for GTA 6.

Devolver Digital has remained insistent that no matter when it comes out, it will be publishing a game on the same day as GTA 6. However Pocketpair's head of publishing and communications has jokingly shared the idea of throwing a Hail Mary of every Palworld project currently announced out alongside GTA.

In a post on Twitter, Bucky says, "Gonna pull a remora, those little fish that swim under a sharks belly, and launch Palworld 1.0, Palfarm and the dating sim right alongside GTA 6." While a response says that "the fans want Palworld to do well at 1.0," he doubles down, saying: "Gonna press the release button 20s after GTA releases."

While Bucky is clearly joking, there is a point to be made that at this point you may actually be better off releasing a game alongside GTA 6 than trying to avoid it. The September and October 2026 release window is now packed to the gills, and I can see games like Control Resonant and Rayman Legends Retold struggling to pick up steam with the likes of Marvel's Wolverine and Onimusha: Way of the Sword – the latter of which is still niche in the grand scheme of things, but Pragmata has proven that Capcom itself is a draw thanks to years of sustained bangers.

On the other end of things, February 2027 is already looking like a bloodbath too, with Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis and Fable already delayed until then. And again, there's still the general Summer Game Fest, Xbox Games Showcase, and potentially a Nintendo Direct to go, so things are only going to get more crowded.

Of course, a lot of people are going to be busy playing GTA 6 when it launches in November, but what about those people who don't really care about it? Offering an alternative in what's already looking to be a month without any other major releases could work wonders in someone else's favor.

"I don't know where GTA Online performance goes after the release of GTA 6," Take-Two boss says, but he doesn't expect it to decline.

For Ned Luke, the voice actor behind Michael in GTA 5, life imitated art in a disturbing way when he was swatted on two separate occasions while playing GTA Online on a livestream. Now, justice has been served to the culprit, and Luke's been celebrating the ruling.

He posted the legal letter he received on Twitter, outlining the details and sentencing. The person in question will be incarcerated for four years, followed by three years of supervision, and a "special assessment" to the cost of $200.

"Don't drop the soap in the shower douchebag," Luke writes in the caption. "Won't be swatting anyone anytime soon. And they're coming for the ones he ratted out as well."

The letter mentions the plaintiff's acceptance of a plea agreement, meaning he's cooperated with legal teams to some extent in exchange for a specific sentence.

The first inciting incident occurred in November 2023, when Luke was livestreaming GTA Online on his personal YouTube channel during Thanksgiving. Mid-stream, a SWAT team arrived at his house, causing a major disturbance. The same thing happened again in December 2025, after which Luke was invited to testify against what officials believed to be a central perpetrator.

If you're unaware of this practice, swatting is when someone falsely implicates another person in a crime or situation egregious enough to warrant a SWAT team's deployment. It's drastically unfunny and extremely dangerous, putting multiple lives at risk.

At least now it's also clear that anyone who participates in such activity could face legitimate jail time.

GTA 5 is still selling millions a year, letting Rockstar do whatever it wants with GTA 6: analyst estimates 1.8 million just on PS5 in 2026

GTA 6 has been looming over the video game industry for so long, I'm starting to think of it as a force of nature rather than a Rockstar game where you can steal cars. Its impact on the human condition seems seismic, bigger than the most powerful earthquake – it's caused some fans to reincarnate as Nostradamus and use the planets to divine when the next GTA 6 trailer is dropping, and it's intimidated countless publishers into reshuffling release dates solely to avoid its November 19 launch. Though, Cult of the Lamb publisher Devolver Digital says it's immune to all that.

Reacting to a Kotaku headline on Twitter, the official Devolver account says "not every publisher" is running scared from GTA 6. Plenty are – and now the new games 2026 schedule for September is ready to pop. The Blood of Dawnwalker is out September 3, Marvel's Wolverine launches September 15, you can expect LEGO Batman Legacy of the Dark Knight on September 18, Silent Hill: Townfall comes September 24, Onimusha: Way of the Sword releases a day later… there are plenty more, but I'm feeling exhausted already.

Presumably, publishers are overstuffing September to give themselves the luxury of a fall release – a few months away – while also leaving at least a few weeks for players to focus solely on their games before the boogeyman that is GTA 6 crawls out from under the bed. Indie expert Devolver, I guess, doesn't share these other publishers' concerns about competing with a behemoth… but the company doesn't seem to have any fall launches planned anyway.

And though Devolver says it isn't scared of big, bad GTA 6, it was openly nervous about the best-rated game of the year, Mina the Hollower, another indie darling. Devolver posted a notice on its website May 21 explaining it was moving fantasy platformer Dark Scrolls' launch day to June 22 since "our friends at Yacht Club Games [announced] that Mina the Hollower would be launching on May 29."

It was good-natured about it: "There's room for two pixelated fantasy action games in the world," said Devolver. "You're just gonna have to wait a little while longer for this one." But it's a bit surprising the publisher would be nervous about Mina, which impressively sold 300,000 copies in three days, and not GTA 6, which is set to sell nauseating numbers, like 7 billion copies or something – one for every house mouse in the world.

However, small-time games like Mina and Dark Scrolls are two little birds competing for breadcrumbs from the same audience. Meanwhile, the average Devolver indie title and typical, $2 billion Rockstar game are appealing to players who are lightyears apart. So Devolver doesn't need to worry about GTA 6, because it's not necessarily trying to sell games to GTA 6 players.

Day of the Devs curator Greg Rice offered similar analysis to GamesRadar+ in 2025, telling us "I think the industry is matured enough that there's space for [GTA 6] and for other things as well. It's gonna be a combination of 'there will be games that will be successful around GTA time because they're totally different,' but it'll also bring a lot more people back into the ecosystem." In other words, Devolver, carry on.

"I don't know where GTA Online performance goes after the release of GTA 6," Take-Two boss says, but he doesn't expect it to decline.

If you're wondering how Rockstar's managed to financially justify holding back GTA 6 through all these delays, you don't have to look much further than GTA 5. Rockstar's last Grand Theft Auto title is continuing to sell by the millions even now, over a decade later, and a new estimate puts a more particular point on just how much GTA 5 continues to sell.

GTA 5 sold 387,000 copies on PlayStation last month, contributing to a total of 1.8 million units sold on PS5 for 2026, according to Alinea's latest estimates.

That number tracks with the official estimates we get from publisher Take-Two's financial reports, where the company regularly reports about 5 million more units sold every quarter. When you account for the additional sales on PS4, PC, and both generations of Xbox, it's easy to see how that 1.8 million estimate factors in.

Alinea's May estimate runs down the full top five on PS5 for May, with 007 First Light (1 million units sold), Minecraft (788,000), Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight (757,000), and EA Sports FC 26 (411,000) filling up the spots ahead of GTA 5 on the platform.

It's a remarkable reminder of GTA 5's staying power, especially when you consider how much money GTA Online is making on top of all these unit sales. We rarely get specific numbers on microtransaction revenues, but leaks have suggested that GTA Online is pulling in something in the neighborhood of $8.4 million per week.

Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick has repeatedly emphasized that Rockstar's looking to "deliver perfection" with GTA 6, but it's rare for any studio to be afforded the time it takes to get anywhere near that standard. GTA 5's uncommon success has given Rockstar an extended runway, and we're now just a few months away from finally seeing what takes off from it.

Here's hoping we have another heavy hitter in the ranks of the best Rockstar games soon.

With Summer Game Fest 2026 set to kick off in just a few days, the question on everyone's lips is whether Grand Theft Auto 6 will make an appearance. It's been a year since GTA 6's second trailer dropped, and since then we've seen nothing of the game – which would have been out already, had it not been delayed to November 19. Not that I'm bitter.

Predicting Rockstar's next move has proven impossible over the years, with attempts resulting in moon cults and hopium-huffing. But with months left until launch, the developer will soon look to ramp up the sales pitch in full – meaning it will have to show what it's selling. With this year's Summer Game Fest 2026 schedule packing presentations from Xbox and PlayStation alongside the main showcase, could Rockstar enter the home stretch this week?

Back to Leonida

While Zelnick suggests we won't have long to wait for more GTA 6 news regardless, whether it will arrive at SGF 2026 remains to be seen (or denied). I'm of the opinion that Rockstar should take the initiative and go big, but the developer's crunch crackdown could motivate it to continue playing coy. Keeping milestones internal means there's less pressure to hit them, and if the release date does need to move back to avoid crunch, it should. There are also arguments to be made in keeping GTA 6's exposure to a minimum and letting the game speak for itself at launch – the greatest mark of confidence, yes, but not one I imagine Rockstar's marketing teams would be as happy with.

Frankly, trying to predict what Rockstar will do – or pinning your hopes to a certain course of action – only guarantees disappointment. However this week pans out, Zelnick seems pretty confident we'll be playing GTA 6 for ourselves come November 19 - so what's a quiet SGF amongst friends?

Was Fable really delayed because of GTA 6, or is the RPG just not finished yet?

A popular GTA Online cheat and mod menu service has suffered a data breach, reportedly affecting almost 64,000 users.

The data breach was flagged by Have I Been Pwned a few days ago, reporting that the incident occurred last month and was carried out by an attacker who "claimed to have gained access to all Atlas systems." Have I Been Pwned puts the number of affected users at over 63.9k, with breached data reportedly including email addresses, usernames, IP addresses, support tickets, and "passwords stored as bcrypt hashes."

Atlas says it "sets the standard for Gold-Tier cheats," which – looking through a showcase video linked on the site – include things like god mode, invisibility, health regeneration, and the ability to spawn weapons and vehicles, with "crash" and "trolling" options also listed. It's a paid service, but it doesn't appear that new purchases can be made on the site right now – whether this is related to the data breach is unclear.

No statements about the breach have been posted on the website, although the home page still advertises its "rock-solid security," allowing players to "confidently utilize our products."

As you might imagine, Rockstar Games and owner Take-Two haven't exactly been encouraging of GTA Online mod menus in the past, or anything that goes against its rules. A couple of years ago, a different mod provider, Kiddions, said that its Modest Menu would "no longer be receiving any support or updates," claiming that some other mod menus "may never work again" after Rockstar rolled out BattlEye Anti-Cheat in a GTA 5 update. Before that, in 2019, Take-Two Interactive filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the creators behind the now-defunct GTA Online mod menu Evolve (thanks, The Verge).

Atlas Menu makes note of Rockstar's terms of service in its own ToS agreement, which says that its cheat menu is "licensed strictly for offline, single-player use," and that "any use of the menu online or in multiplayer contexts is a direct violation of Rockstar Games' Terms of Service." It adds: "Atlas will not be held liable for bans, suspensions, or any negative consequences resulting from unauthorized use."

In this case, though, it doesn't look like it was Rockstar or Take-Two that Atlas had to worry about.

"I don't know where GTA Online performance goes after the release of GTA 6," Take-Two boss says, but he doesn't expect it to decline.

It's tough to compete with one of the most beloved, influential first-person shooters of all time, but if there's one game that can go toe-to-toe with the original Halo, it's a faithful but spruced-up remake like Halo: Campaign Evolved. That said, according to a veteran of Halo creator Bungie, that sprucing up is precisely what makes the remake inferior to the original.

During an appearance on the Mint Blitz podcast, former Bungie design lead Niles Sankey, who was with the company from 2006 to 2015, shared his impressions of the upcoming Halo remake. Obviously, Sankey has no insight into the production itself, but he's seen the same gameplay footage we all have, and while he's impressed by the visual fidelity, he worries Halo Studios isn't seeing the snowcapped mountains for the trees, prioritizing detail over map readability.

Sankey admits the environments in Halo: Campaign Evolved "look good," but he says he's "just not the biggest fan of modern, AAA, fancy, Unreal graphics" because that level of detail can impair visibility. Some games, like Arc Raiders specifically, are visually "amazing," says Sankey, but in general he prefers landscapes where you can actually see what's going on.

"I do question the readability of some of the battlefield," says Sankey. "I think that one thing that Halo, and Halo 1 especially did a great job of, is, you could read the battlefield. You can clearly see the enemies. You can clearly see your lanes. The constraints actually make it a stronger game in my opinion, cause you don't have all this foliage everywhere.

"It's a game, first and foremost. You need to see where your enemies are. You need to see where your lanes and routes are, and that's what's most fun ... I get the sense that sometimes companies overlook that and instead are just trying to make the best graphics possible without considering the ramifications of what those fancy graphics might mean."

I don't know if it's just my aging, blurry vision talking, but I totally get what Sankey's saying here. I'm sure there's a method to creating modern, high-fidelity games without sacrificing readability, and Sankey says he hopes the "smart people" at Halo Studios will accomplish that in the final product, but I can think of a handful of extremely popular multiplayer games which I've tried playing but found challenging due to there being too much happening, and in too much detail, on screen. As for Halo: Campaign Evolved specifically, I do think enemies blend into environments at least more-so than in the original, and we'll just have to wait and see how readable the maps are at launch.

As Halo and Forza Horizon 6 prepare to jump ship to PS5, Xbox fans use new community voting tool to tell Microsoft they want their exclusives back

There's a lot we don't yet know about GTA 6, but perhaps the biggest mystery of all is what it will mean for GTA Online. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick says one thing's for sure: GTA Online ain't going anywhere, and he's not worried about fans dropping it when GTA 6 launches.

"I don't know where GTA Online performance goes after the release of GTA 6," Zelnick tells The Game Business. "I have no reason to believe that the performance will not continue."

That makes it sound as if GTA Online will continue in its current form after GTA 6, but we can still really only guess at the details, and the possibilities are effectively endless. GTA Online could continue purely in its current form, but that seems unrealistic when all the GTA 6 players on current-gen consoles get used to a new graphical standard. GTA Online could be reborn as a new experience with GTA 6 as a base, but that seems unrealistic when it's making so much money with PS4, Xbox One, and PC players who may not want (or be able to afford) a new console.

Perhaps the most likely answer is that the old GTA Online will continue to exist, and something new will launch alongside GTA 6, maybe with some connection to the existing mode. That's pure speculation, but we do know that Rockstar's working on some sort of GTA 6-specific online mode, which was revealed as part of the court proceedings over the company's alleged union-busting last year.

Either way, Zelnick has been consistent in saying that GTA Online's success will be unaffected by the upcoming launch. "I have every reason to believe we'll continue to support GTA Online," he said as part of an investor Q&A earlier this year. "There's a great community that loves it, that stays engaged, and again, in this quarter, Rockstar has shown that when you deliver great additional content, despite how long GTA Online has been at market, people show up."

But, of course, Zelnick has a major interest in telling investors that the GTA Online cash cow will continue to produce its sweet, golden milk. The Rockstar leak earlier this year suggested that GTA Online was making somewhere in the neighborhood of $8 million a week, a bit of impromptu news that quickly sent Take-Two's stock price soaring. It's no wonder the company doesn't wanna rock the boat.

Grand Theft Auto overtook its competition by ignoring annual releases, Take-Two CEO says: "Look at what happened to the properties that were higher up in the food chain."

Red Dead Redemption 2 has had stamina fit for a horse, but Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick doesn't think the cowboy epic's long shelf life has much to do with the hype for GTA 6.

Rockstar Games' open-world sequel recently became the third best-selling game of all time, barging Wii Sports out of the way with a whopping 85 million copies sold as of March 2026. Even more impressive is the game's legs – Red Dead Redemption 2 also had its best year sales-wise since it originally launched.

The only games above Red Dead Redemption 2 on the all-time charts are, as you might be able to guess, GTA 5 in second place and Minecraft on top (Tetris would also rank if you're counting all of its different editions, but I digress).

With such a momentous milestone in the rear view, some have speculated that the long gap between Grand Theft Auto games and the generation-spanning wait for GTA 6 may have contributed to the commercial success of Red Dead 2. If you can't get ahold of a new GTA, it's easy to imagine some fans would simply reach for something that vaguely resembles it.

But that's not a sentiment Strauss Zelnick, the chief executive officer of Rockstar Games' parent company, agrees with. To him, Red Dead Redemption 2 got there without the help of its older, more popular sibling.

"No," he says plainly when asked if Red Dead Redemption 2's sales were driven by GTA 6 hype in an interview with The Game Post. "I do think Rockstar Games almost uniquely has a brand position in entertainment, because consumers tend to be interested in all of their offerings. But no, I think that stands alone."

Zelnick instead attributes the game's success to the "very loyal and engaged audience" that the Red Dead series enjoys. "And they love the title. And by the way, I love the title."

Despite Red Dead Online's relatively slim offerings compared to GTA Online's still hefty updates, the executive also recently said he didn't view the multiplayer mode as a missed opportunity. Historic sales numbers and a bunch of accolades are probably enough, it seems.

Grand Theft Auto overtook its competition by ignoring annual releases, Take-Two CEO says: "Look at what happened to the properties that were higher up in the food chain."

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has pushed back against the suggestion that Red Dead Online was a missed opportunity due to its lack of support in comparison to GTA Online.

Red Dead Online came out around a month after Red Dead Redemption 2 arrived on shelves, and while it didn't quite light the world on fire in the same way GTA Online did, it was popular enough with players. However, while GTA Online has had a ton of content updates in its nearly 13 years of life, Rockstar pulled back on Red Dead after releasing the Dead Money expansion in 2021 – with a very brief return for 2025's "Strange Tales of the West." This left fans pondering what could have been with the online game, had Rockstar Games not dropped it.

When asked by IGN if he views Red Dead Online as a missed opportunity, given the lack of content compared to GTA Online, likely not drawing in players, Zelnick says, "There is literally nothing about Red Dead selling 85 million units that could signal a missed opportunity. And Red Dead Online has been immensely successful and long-lasting."

Zelnick adds, "If we didn't have Grand Theft Auto here at our company, then people would just talk about the fact that we have this massive franchise in Red Dead, which we do and of which we're very proud."

For context, Red Dead Redemption 2 is behind only Minecraft and GTA 5 on the best-selling games of all time list (and multiple versions of Tetris, though due to its multiple releases, many omit it as the top seller), so, as he puts it, the game itself is hardly a missed opportunity. Granted, he didn't really acknowledge the lack of content compared to GTA, and sure, Red Dead Online still has a big fanbase, but it does feel like it could've been even bigger.

GTA 6 pre-orders look set for summer, as Take-Two CEO teases that's when "Rockstar expects to start marketing" it

As we continue to get closer to GTA 6, Rockstar and Take-Two have taken another step in reducing how many multiplayer servers players have access to. Another's been taken down by the company, with the sunsetting process already underway.

The devs behind Rage:MP, a platform offering one of the bigger multiplayer options for GTA 5, have announced that Rockstar's parent served them a cease and desist. "Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive have made it clear that FiveM is the only authorized platform for GTAV multiplayer modding, as defined in their Platform License Agreement (PLA)," the statement reads.

"In accordance with that policy, and at Take-Two's request, Rage:MP will begin a structured shutdown process," the team adds. "We are asking all server owners to wind down their operations and migrate to FiveM."

This first deadline for this process is June 1, when the publicly available list of servers is getting removed. It's advised that all server owners log in before then to make sure they retain the same level of access on FiveM once this change occurs.

Then the next deadline is August 31, wherein the lights go off on Rage:MP. Any servers not moved over to FiveM will go down as the platform disappears into digital nothingness.

If you're unaware of FiveM, it's a similar toolkit for setting up custom multiplayer within GTA Online, and it was bought by Rockstar in 2023. At risk of stating the obvious, the studio's parent Take-Two really seems to be closing ranks on unofficial outlets ahead of the sixth mainline game's arrival, as other, similar sites have gotten this same treatment.

It's a real shame, because some servers and players will inevitably choose not to move for one reason or another. Their work and that sliver of the GTA 5 experience will be gone forever, in the name of brand control. Pour one out for them, and if you're on a server on Rage:MP, make sure to get more sessions in while you can.

GTA 6 release was supposed to be today, and fans are riding the hopium for any "brief update" from Rockstar: "Let's just pray there's no more delays"

Today is the big day that GTA 6 was meant to release – you know, before all the past delay shenanigans – and unsurprisingly, excited fans of Rockstar Games' upcoming title are going through all of the feels right now.

It's been a wild few weeks for the Grand Theft Auto community, with rumors surrounding a Trailer 3 release, supposed Best Buy leaks, talk of an $115 price tag, and discussions suggesting that GTA 6 pre-orders are opening soon.

It's safe to say that folks are absolutely on their toes anticipating the release at this point, and it doesn't help that the sixth entry in Rockstar's beloved franchise was originally set to launch today.

Today was supposed to be the day for us all to rejoice. 🥺 from r/GTA6

As a fan disappointedly writes over on Reddit, "Today was supposed to be the day for us all to rejoice." They add, "Let's just pray there's no more delays." Comments see various GIFs of crying characters and whatnot, and lots of hopium (or copium, really), of course.

"Maybe it is, in some alternate universe," comments one sad user. Another – sigh – jokes, "Day's not over." Leave it to the GTA 6 fanbase to have hope when there truly is none to be had.

Others are pointing out how Rockstar's old post unveiling Trailer 2 – which is still pinned on X – highlights the GTA 6 release date as May 26, 2026. "It would be funny if they just unpin the post and do nothing," one fan jests, only for somebody to respond, "Then they will need a new trailer to pin."

I doubt we'll see that happen anytime soon, honestly, seeing as we know that Rockstar expects to start marketing its long-awaited game this summer. Amid all the commotion surrounding what should've been the GTA 6 release date, though, there are also those who anticipate that Rockstar will say something itself.

As one person states in an online thread, "Had there not been another delay, GTA 6 would've been dropping around the world as we speak. I am confident we will have some form of update from Rockstar Games tomorrow, ahead of the full marketing kicking off in June."

They continue: "Their pinned X post still shows Trailer 2 with May 26th, 2026 as the release date, which would seem a poor marketing move to leave in situ. My guess will be a few screens with a brief update on development progress and confirmation of the summer marketing kicking off next month."

That's certainly a nice train of thought, but as it's all just speculation for now, there's no telling what Rockstar's next move is.

I'd say the safest thing to do today is simply commemorate it – as one fan writes in their own post, "Today was supposed to be the day. Six more months!" Indeed. Heck, the community has waited nearly 13 years… what's another few months, eh?

GTA 6 isn't getting delayed again, Take-Two confirms, but those Best Buy pre-order rumors are bunk, marketing to ramp up this summer

Right ahead of the world becoming fully obsessed with GTA 6, Red Dead Redemption 2 has crossed another momentous milestone. The Western open-world playground is now the third best-selling game ever, according to Rockstar Games owner Take-Two.

This incredible achievement is noted in Take-Two's latest earnings report. A slide on the Red Dead series points out just how well the historic sandboxes have done for Rockstar, with a bullet-point on Red Dead Redemption 2's sales. Apparently, the game has shifted over 85 million copies to date.

That's a hefty number. As you may already know, Grand Theft Auto 5 ranks above it, but only in second, having sold around 230 million copies to date. The top position is split between Minecraft and Tetris - whether the latter's lifetime sales should count is a matter of contention, but either way, those are two monoliths of the industry.

It might be a while before Red Dead Redemption 2 gets close to those numbers, and the ranking will likely be disrupted before then by Grand Theft Auto 6, but for now, this is a huge moment. Roger Clark, who voices Arthur Morgan in the game, thanked fans on Twitter for making this such a career-defining work for him.

"Thank you, what an honor, it's the fans that keep it going," he says, in response to a post congratulating him on the game's continued success. It truly is the community that's kept Red Dead Redemption 2 alive, whether through mods, ongoing discussions, or deep-dives into the richly detailed world.

Heck, there are still unsolved mysteries players are trying to figure out to this day. It's a game that just gives and gives, and it'll continue to do so right up until we get Red Dead Redemption 3, I'm sure.

GTA 6 pre-orders look set for summer, as Take-Two CEO teases that's when "Rockstar expects to start marketing" it

Despite all of the rumors surrounding a Trailer 3 release and a supposed leak via Best Buy, pre-orders for GTA 6 likely aren't going live any time soon.

Or, at least, that's what Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick says to Bloomberg in a new interview, as per a new online post from Jason Schreier.

In case you've been out of the loop, folks have been absolutely convinced that GTA 6 pre-orders are opening up yesterday, today, tomorrow, and you name it. A lot of this hopium found its origins in retailers like Best Buy, with fans claiming support told them that pre-orders would be going live, as well as reports of an email being sent out to affiliates which allegedly stated that a pre-order campaign would be kicking off this week.

There hasn't been any solid confirmation, however, from Rockstar Games or otherwise – but now, it appears that Grand Theft Auto stans' hopes may finally be laid to rest as Schreier reports that, yes, GTA 6 is still on course to drop on November 19 with "no delay" in sight – but Zelnick doesn't know "where this week's Best Buy rumors came from" and "pre-orders typically start alongside marketing (which will begin this summer)."

Take-Two earnings: Grand Theft Auto VI is still planned for November 19. No delay. In an interview with Bloomberg today, CEO Strauss Zelnick said he didn't know where this week's Best Buy rumors came from and that pre-orders typically start alongside marketing (which will begin this summer).

— @jasonschreier.bsky.social (@jasonschreier.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-05-22T13:24:13.197Z

This lines up nicely with what Zelnick tells Variety, too, that "when it's summertime, Rockstar expects to start marketing GTA 6."

In other words, GTA 6 pre-orders probably aren't going to be open to the public until June 21 or later – that's when summer officially kicks off, after all. It's sad news for all of the hopeful fans wanting to secure their purchase now, now, now, but all things considered, the upcoming season isn't that far away, really.

Heck, the community has waited a whopping 12 (nearly 13) years for a new Grand Theft Auto game. It hasn't been an easy wait, with fans using everything from pizza boxes to moon phases to try to decipher developers' plans… as GTA players do.

All of this theorizing, coupled with past delays, has people on the edge of their seats – but what's another couple of months, eh? As long as there's no further setback, that is.

GTA 6 isn't getting delayed again, Take-Two confirms, but those Best Buy pre-order rumors are bunk, marketing to ramp up this summer.