Soon, the “X before GTA 6” memes will subside, though not too soon. During an investor call, the 2025 launch of Grand Theft Auto 6 was confirmed by executives. However, the launch will be primarily for consoles, meaning the Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X|S; there wasn't any inclusion of the PC version.
An investor also asked a question about the confidence of this release date, to which CEO Strauss Zelnick explained that while “slippage” is possible, the team “feel[s] really good about it.”
These calls are usually straightforward about the state of the company in question, as they’re meant to be for those who are literally financially invested in that company, as well as the press onlookers. It would be quite high-stakes for the Take-Two uppers to lie at this point, especially since they already claimed back in November they were on track.
Realistically, this relatively confident discussion can mean Grand Theft Auto 6 will most likely launch anywhere from late September to late December. There’s no way that Rockstar and Take-Two would want to miss out on the holiday season, though, as a pre-holiday launch could mean record-breaking launch numbers, given how hotly anticipated GTA 6 is.
It’s also a good sign that they doubled down within the calendar year, as it’s usually with this proximity to the release date, less than a year from an estimated date, that delays start becoming a question. The concern of a delay is also valid given games such as Cyberpunk 2077 and The Last of Us: Part 2 saw such massive delays that the former literally prompted memes from the announcement format.
Still, in fighting for these deadlines, these AAA games do tend to risk a culture of crunch, which Rockstar Games is especially infamous for.
While we’ve known about GTA 6’s inevitability since December 2023, this likely also means the marketing barrage for the game is probably bound to start soon. Brace yourselves.
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