Rockstar expects Grand Theft Auto 6 to mark the largest launch in the video game industry history. The company mentioned as much as part of its recent efforts to expand parts of its team in the lead-up to the GTA 6 debut.
GTA 6 currently has a May 26 release date attached to it. Since announcing it in 2023, Rockstar has shared two trailers, each focused on one of the playable protagonists, alongside character vignettes and location snapshots that expand on the game's cast and setting.
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Rockstar Expects GTA 6 To Be 'the Largest Game Launch in History'
Much like the first GTA 6 trailer made YouTube history, Rockstar expects the game itself to set some records of its own. In a posting for a Lead Software Engineer at its Manhattan office, the company framed GTA 6 as "the largest game launch in history," TheGamer reports. That's a striking bit of language to surface on an official careers page, underscoring the developer's confidence in the upcoming title.
GTA 5 Holds Some Records That Are Even Harder to Break
"Largest" could refer to several yardsticks, including revenue, unit sales, total playing hours, or a combination thereof. Regardless, the bar is exceptionally high, a highlighted by publisher Take-Two Interactive previously confirming that GTA 5 generated $1 billion in its first three days on the market. Even if GTA 6 manages to outperform this figure, its predecessor holds some records that will be much more difficult to break. Between multiple re-releases and over a decade's worth of multiplayer content support, it managed to maintain its momentum longer than any title in existence. Specifically, GTA 5 became the most successful piece of entertainment ever made in 2018, with $6 billion in estimated revenue. Over the next seven years, it added another $4 billion to that figure.
While Rockstar has so far made limited efforts to market GTA 6 since its announcement, the company's recent hiring activity suggests a full-scale global campaign is likely to launch once it is confident about meeting its latest release date. Based on the developer's track record, that turning point will most likely coincide with the start of pre-orders. On that note, there's still no word on how much the game will cost, though it's likely to be offered in multiple editions at launch.
Rockstar's lofty expectations look even more ambitious in light of the fact that GTA 6 will be skipping PC at launch. While the game is widely expected to eventually arrive on PC, the developer is currently focused on the console versions and has yet to confirm any plans beyond that. Based on Rockstar's track record, and assuming no further delays, a mid-2026 console launch could be followed by a GTA 6 PC release in late 2027 or early 2028.
OpenCritic Reviews
- Released
- November 19, 2026
- ESRB
- Rating Pending - Likely Mature 17+
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar Games
- Publisher(s)
- Rockstar Games
