Asked on YouTube, Take-Two’s CEO puts November 19, 2026 eighteen months after the original date, which doesn’t match the announced fall 2025.
Sources gamingbible.com
In an interview on David Senra’s YouTube channel, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said GTA VI was launching “18 months behind the original date, not much more than that.” Spotted by GAMINGbible, the line is surprising: eighteen months before November 19, 2026 lands in spring 2025, while Rockstar had officially announced fall 2025.
The public dates are known: fall 2025 originally, then May 26, 2026, then November 19, 2026. Taking Zelnick at his word means going back to around May 2025, a season before the fall target. GAMINGbible concludes the game was pushed internally from spring to fall 2025, before the two delays the public knows about, which would make the latest one a third. X user Cade_Onder was among the first to flag the gap, and GAMINGbible writes that Insider Gaming’s Tom Henderson seems to have confirmed that reading. In the material we have, neither Take-Two nor Rockstar has commented.
Take the math for what it is: a deduction from an offhand remark. “Not much more than that” leaves slack, and a CEO speaking casually rounds. An internal slip is not absurd, since studios rarely announce a date they know is fragile, but it remains a hypothesis. For players the point is elsewhere: GAMINGbible notes the game is still locked to November 19.
The same article lists more clues. According to GAMINGbible, US retailer Best Buy offered affiliates a 5% commission on GTA VI pre-orders placed between May 18 and 21. On the PlayStation Store the game’s page now says “Free Delivery” with empty filters, and on the Xbox Store it keeps appearing and disappearing. An anonymous insider also mentions six versions: three physical and digital editions, two PlayStation console bundles and one pricey collector’s edition. That is a rumor with no identified source. Take-Two’s earnings are expected on May 21.
The collector rumor was partly borne out: “The Goodtime State” sells for €399.99, without the game. Rockstar then opened pre-orders, with a standard edition at €79.99 and an Ultimate at €99.99 (details on our price page). Release remains set for November 19, 2026 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, with preload on November 12 and a PEGI 18 rating. No PC version is announced. The exact makeup of the six rumored versions was never confirmed.
For players, nothing changes on the date: November 19. For anyone keeping the timeline, Zelnick’s line adds a possible chapter, that of a game targeted internally earlier than Rockstar had said. If Take-Two or Rockstar comment, we will come back to it.
Sources gamingbible.com
By Daniel Jasner · VI Countdown newsroom, OKALAM Studio