GTA 6 Release Set — No More Delays, Says Take-Two Boss

Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick has confirmed that Grand Theft Auto 6’s release has been postponed from 2025 to May 26, 2026. He emphasized that Rockstar Games is “seeking perfection” and that the team’s “consumer anticipation is unprecedented.” Zelnick believes giving Rockstar more time for such a monumental game is a “worthy investment,” a message reiterated in Take-Two’s latest financial report and an IGN interview.

Zelnick explained the decision stemmed from the need for “continued polish” as the game approached the finish line. He noted that “with a small amount of incremental time,” Rockstar could fully realize its creative vision without compromise.

When asked if GTA 6 could face another delay, Zelnick was reassuring: “Historically, when we set a specific date, we’ve been very good about reaching it.” While GTA 5 faced a single delay on consoles—from spring 2013 to September 17 that year—the PC version arrived much later, in April 2015.

Zelnick also revealed that GTA 6’s full-scale development started in 2020, after the release of Red Dead Redemption 2. The game’s second trailer shattered records, becoming the “biggest video launch of all time” with more than 475 million views in just 24 hours. Its featured track, “Hot Together” by The Pointer Sisters, experienced a staggering 182,000% surge in Spotify streams—further proof of Rockstar’s powerful impact on pop culture.

Despite GTA’s massive cultural footprint, some question whether it remains genuinely innovative. While its sandbox design, satirical takes, and nods to American pop culture and media (like the Bonnie-and-Clyde-inspired leads Jason and Lucia) are iconic, its derivative nature may lend it a certain hollowness beneath the spectacle.