Just when you thought you could stop thinking about GTA 6for the year and focus on Christmas, here comes one last story on the game’s release date to keep your blood pressure nice and high.
It’s been a long and winding road to the release of GTA 6. First announced in December 2023, the next Grand Theft Auto game was originally targeting a 2025 release window. This was then pushed back to May 2026, before more recently getting delayed little bit more to November 19, 2026.
Will GTA 6 Be Delayed Again?
Well, isn’t that the big question
As we head into 2026, gamers everywhere find themselves wondering whether GTA 6 could possibly be delayed again. It’s certainly a turbulent time for Rockstar, with recent reports alleging poor working conditions and even union-busting.
In a statement given last month, Rockstar Games explainedGTA 6 needed to be pushed to November 2026 to give the game an extra level of polish.
They wrote:
“We are sorry for adding additional time to what we realize has been a long wait, but these extra months will allow us to finish the game with the level of polish you have come to expect and deserve.”
So, what’s to stop this from happening again? According to one former Rockstar Games dev, November 19, 2026 is the absolute final release date — even if that means the game isn’t perfect by Rockstar’s increasingly infamous standards.
Speaking to Esports Insider, ex Rockstar Games dev Mike York, who worked as an animator on GTA 5, stated the studio simply can’t afford another delay at this point.
He explained:
“If I know Rockstar Games, and I know the guys over there, one of the reasons for the delay in releasing GTA 6 is because they’re trying to make it look as best as it can possibly be. They’re polishing stuff. I don’t think they’re completely finished with the game, given how much is on the line and how big everyone’s expectations are for it. If Rockstar Games delay GTA 6 again then the hype around the game will die down almost completely. Right now, nobody is searching for GTA 6. Everyone knows there’s no news, there’s nothing to talk about… There’s a point where you delay something so much that you start to make people angry.”
While I certainly see where York is coming from, and I think this could be true of a lot of games, I’m not sure that we’ll ever reach a point where people stop caring about GTA 6. The fervor around this game only ever seems to grow.
GTA 6 Probably Won’t Be Delayed Again
This has to be it
Regardless of whether people stop caring about GTA 6 (they won’t), the game is almost certainly not going to be delayed a third time. Recent rumors that the game could be pushed back to 2027 were slammed as “complete BS” by insiders. Between rumors like these,
and the endless slew of AI trailers for GTA 6 being pumped onto the internet like sewage into a river, it’s clear we all have to calm down a little bit.
We don’t know for sure what the future holds for GTA 6, but for now, I think we should all step into Christmas with the belief that it’ll be ready on November 19 next year. We can get back to stressing out and speculating in the new year, yeah?
- Released
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November 19, 2026
- ESRB
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Rating Pending – Likely Mature 17+
- Engine
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Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE)
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer
