The wait continues for now: Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar Games have postponed the release of GTA 6 once again. Instead of May 26, the long-awaited title is now scheduled for release on November 19.
It's a statement that could shake up the release plans of quite a few publishers and make spring 2026 an interesting release window for AA titles again: When announcing its figures for the second quarter of its fiscal year, Take-Two Interactive dropped a huge bombshell and announced another delay for GTA 6. The good news is that the long-awaited title is still scheduled for release in 2026 and – importantly for shareholders – is still planned for the 2027 fiscal year.
However, instead of May 26, GTA will not be released until November 19. This is surprising because Take-Two Interactive and the Rockstar Games label did not give a specific date for a long time. When the release period was postponed from the end of 2025, a specific date was given for the first time.
The current postponement overshadows the otherwise positive figures published by the publisher for the second fiscal quarter ending September 30. During this quarter net bookings grew 33% to 1.96 billion US dollar. In fact, CEO Strauss Zelnick announced the postponement rather casually.
“We achieved outstanding second quarter results by releasing new hit titles, driving innovation in live services, and maintaining our commitment to developing the highest quality products. With momentum across our business, particularly in mobile and NBA 2K, we are raising our Fiscal Year 2026 Net Bookings forecast for the second consecutive quarter. Rockstar Games 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. With the most robust pipeline in our Company’s history, we expect to achieve record levels of Net Bookings in Fiscal 2027, which will establish a new baseline for our business and set us on a path of enhanced profitability.”
However, the postponement is likely to have consequences for the entire industry. On the one hand, the global gaming industry hopes that the release will set a new benchmark for games as an entertainment medium. On the other hand, GTA 6 will leave little room for other games, as it will tie up the money and time of millions of gamers.
In this respect, the new release date is also likely to cause numerous other publishers to revise their release schedules. After all, a new Call of Duty game, which is also one of the top sellers of the year, usually hits the market in November. If this also applies to 2026, all other November releases are likely to have a hard time achieving significant sales figures.
On the other hand, the postponement has made May and June more attractive release periods, with AA titles in particular likely to benefit, as they usually avoid the busy fall release season anyway.
