Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier has revealed that Grand Theft Auto 6 was already delayed, and the industry is waiting to see if they will delay it again.
As reported by RockstarIntel, the studio already missed several development deadlines. As had previously been reported, while Rockstar really did start work on the game in 2011, full development only came after Red Dead Redemption 2 was released, in October 2018.
RockstarIntel also pointed out that since Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two changed their sales projections from this year to next year, the company already tipped their hat that they did this.
Still, other game developers and publishers are aware that Grand Theft Auto 6 could see another delay. In fact, many of them are hoping for it. As reported by Video Games Chronicle, other game companies are hoping to put as much distance from their games and Rockstar’s big comeback as much as possible.
The big third party games expected to arrive next year include Monster Hunter Wilds, Atomfall, Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Fragpunk, FBC Firebreak, Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra, The First Berzerker: Khazan, and Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines 2.
In contrast, both Nintendo and Microsoft have announced a healthy slate of titles, in contrast to Sony’s Ghost of Yotei. Nintendo’s lineup includes Pokemon Legends Z-A, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD, and Xenoblade Chronicles X: HD Edition.
On the other hand, Microsoft’s lineup includes Avowed, Fable, Doom: The Dark Ages, and South of Midnight. Sony may, of course, announce or reveal other first party games of their own coming next year, but if that includes the likes of Fairgame$, their prospects may not quite be as great.
Sony usually covers up for those years without big 1st party games with huge third party offerings, and that’s why there’s a lot of hope among Sony fans themselves that Grand Theft Auto 6 makes it to Fall 2025.
Truthfully, given how so many big games ended up in 2025’s slate, Grand Theft Auto 6 does not need to release in the same year as well. Perhaps all these big releases may be enough to make the industry recover even without Rockstar’s signature title to release alongside them.
We should also factor in here the fact that Rockstar employees are lobbying harder for their rights, to improve working conditions in the company. This could be a case where it would be completely justifiable to delay the game, to improve the well-being of the people making it.
But of course, nobody, not even a company as big as Rockstar, can delay their game forever. So Rockstar is going to have to factor all of that in if they decide that they can hold back the game a little bit longer, or if it turns out, it does need a little bit more time in the oven.
