GTA 6 has been delayed twice. Rockstar first promised "2025", then on May 2, 2025 set May 26, 2026, and on November 6, 2025 moved the game to November 19, 2026. That date has held since. Take-Two built its fiscal 2027 forecast on it in May and repeated it in August 2026, and after the August leaks Rockstar called the game "nearly there". Our GTA 6 countdown shows the time left in your own time zone.

No third GTA 6 delay has been announced as of October 11, 2026. Below is every date, with the words Rockstar and Take-Two used and a link to each original.

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GTA 6 delay timeline: a desk calendar with torn-off pages next to a cold cup of coffee in pink neon light

Short answer

  • Two delays: 2025 → May 26, 2026 → November 19, 2026.
  • Both were announced by Rockstar on Newswire, with quality and polish as the stated reason.
  • Take-Two named November 19 in its reports on November 6, 2025, May 21, 2026 and August 7, 2026.
  • On August 26, 2026, after leaked footage spread, Rockstar called the game "nearly there".
  • Will it slip again? Unknown. Nothing official points that way as of October 11.

Timeline of every GTA 6 date

Date Who What changed In their words
Dec 5, 2023 Rockstar First window: 2025 "Coming 2025 to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S"
May 2, 2025 Rockstar Delay #1 to May 26, 2026 "We are very sorry that this is later than you expected"
Nov 6, 2025 Rockstar Delay #2 to Nov 19, 2026 "these extra months will allow us to finish the game with the level of polish you have come to expect and deserve"
Nov 6, 2025 Take-Two Date repeated in quarterly results "we remain both excited and confident" (Strauss Zelnick)
May 21, 2026 Take-Two Fiscal 2027 forecast tied to Nov 19 "record levels of operating performance driven by the November 19th launch"
Aug 7, 2026 Take-Two $8.0–8.2 billion outlook reiterated "excitement around the November 19th launch"
Aug 26, 2026 Rockstar Statement after the leaks the game is "nearly there"

Three of those rows moved the date. The other four only confirmed it, and two of them are SEC filings, where a company writes to its investors, not to fans.

Delay #1: 2025 to May 26, 2026

The first delay came on May 2, 2025, about 17 months after Trailer 1 promised 2025. Rockstar's Newswire post did two things at once. It gave the first exact day, May 26, 2026, and it apologised.

The key lines: "We are very sorry that this is later than you expected," and "we need this extra time to deliver at the level of quality you expect and deserve." The post gave no technical detail, no list of unfinished features and no comment on GTA Online.

What it meant in practice: 2025 was off, and for the first time fans had a specific day to count down to. That day lasted six months.

Delay #2: May to November 19, 2026

On November 6, 2025, Rockstar posted the second delay, moving the game by almost six months, to Thursday, November 19, 2026. The reason was polish again: "these extra months will allow us to finish the game with the level of polish you have come to expect and deserve."

Take-Two published its quarterly results the same day and repeated the new date. Strauss Zelnick, its CEO, said Rockstar "will now release Grand Theft Auto VI on November 19, 2026, and we remain both excited and confident they will deliver an unrivalled blockbuster entertainment experience."

From that day the studio and the publisher have used the same date everywhere. For everything else known about the launch, see the GTA 6 release date page.

Will GTA 6 be delayed again?

Unknown. Here is what the public record says, without guessing.

For November 19: Take-Two's May 21, 2026 earnings release says fiscal 2027 "will establish new record levels of operating performance driven by the November 19th launch of Grand Theft Auto VI." On August 7, 2026 it reiterated its fiscal 2027 net bookings outlook of $8.0 to $8.2 billion, again naming the launch. Fiscal 2027 runs to March 31, 2027, so November is inside it. On August 26, Rockstar responded to leaked footage by calling the game "nearly there" and asking players to "wait a bit longer to experience the game for themselves on November 19." Pre-orders have been open since June 25, 2026.

What nobody outside the company knows: whether anything could still move the date. Both previous delays were announced on Newswire first, so that is where to watch. Our GTA 6 news page logs each official statement as it appears.

What the delays changed for buyers

Less than you might expect, because buying only opened after both delays. Rockstar opened pre-orders on June 25, 2026, at midnight local time. The prices, the two editions and the Vintage Vice City Pack bonus were all announced in the same window, so no price was ever raised or lowered by a delay.

The one deadline that depends on the launch date is the bonus: pre-orders and purchases made before November 20, 2026 get the Vintage Vice City Pack. If the date ever moved again, that cut-off would be worth rechecking. The full buying picture is in our GTA 6 pre-order guide.

What usually goes wrong

Old articles with "May 26". Articles written between May and November 2025 are still online and still say May 26, 2026. Check the publication date before trusting a date.

Confusing fiscal and calendar years. "Fiscal 2027" in Take-Two documents means the year ending March 31, 2027. It does not mean GTA 6 comes out in 2027. November 19, 2026 falls inside that fiscal year.

Reading a leak as a delay. Leaked gameplay footage spread in August 2026. On August 26 Rockstar answered by repeating November 19. Unauthorized footage says nothing about the schedule, and Rockstar has not confirmed anything in it.

Counting the 2025 window as a broken date. "Coming 2025" was a year, not a day. The first specific date Rockstar ever gave was May 26, 2026, so strictly the game has missed one exact date, not two.

Trusting "delayed again" headlines without a source. Every real delay so far came straight from Rockstar on Newswire. A headline that cannot point to a Newswire post or a Take-Two filing is not news about the date; our confirmed vs rumors page sorts these out.

The date to watch now is November 19, and the one before it is November 12, when pre-load opens; the file size and pre-load guide covers how to get ready, and the release time by time zone page converts both dates to your clock. Our GTA 6 countdown counts down to both, and every other page we keep updated sits in the GTA 6 hub. If five more weeks feels long, the random game picker will choose something to play until then; GTA V and GTA Online guides are in the GTA hub, the rest on the guides page.

See also

FAQ

How many times has GTA 6 been delayed?

Twice. In May 2025 Rockstar moved it from 2025 to May 26, 2026. In November 2025 it moved it again, to November 19, 2026.

What was the original GTA 6 release date?

There was no exact day, only a year. Trailer 1 on December 5, 2023 said 'Coming 2025 to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S'. May 26, 2026 was the first specific date.

What reason did Rockstar give for moving GTA 6 to November 2026?

Rockstar said the extra months would let it 'finish the game with the level of polish you have come to expect and deserve'. It did not name a specific part of the game that was late.

Is GTA 6 delayed again?

No new delay has been announced as of October 11, 2026. Take-Two repeated November 19 in its August 7, 2026 report, and on August 26 Rockstar called the game 'nearly there'. Whether it stays that way, nobody outside the company knows.

Did the delays change the price or pre-order bonus?

No. Prices and the pre-order bonus were only announced in June 2026, after both delays, so there was nothing earlier to change. The Vintage Vice City Pack applies to pre-orders and purchases before November 20, 2026.

What does Take-Two say about the November 19 date?

In its August 7, 2026 report Take-Two reiterated its fiscal 2027 net bookings outlook of $8.0 to $8.2 billion, citing 'excitement around the November 19th launch of Grand Theft Auto VI'.

Sources