GTA 6 LIVE: Game release to end 'post-pandemic industry depression' hopes developer

GTA 5 Enhanced now on PC Game Pass

GTA 5 Enhanced is now available to players who are subscribed to PC Game Pass.

A social media post from Rockstar Games said: "Experience the best version of GTA 5 and GTA Online on PC with GTA 5 Enhanced.

"Free upgrade for all players who already own GTA 5 on PC, also now available to play with PC Game Pass from the Xbox app on PC."

Game developer on future of gaming industry after GTA 6 release

A post in the GTA 6 Subreddit has got fans talking about what they think the future of the video games industry will look like after the game's release.

And someone who says they are a developer working for a "European A / AAish" studio has given their thoughts.

Onaterdem said: "As a developer myself*, I'm hoping it will finally put an end to this post-pandemic industry depression.

"Teach greedy CEOs that letting passionate developers cook a fantastic product, for as much time as they need, makes more money than firing hardworking developers, replacing them with genAI or outsourced manpower, abandoning ethics and exclusively focusing on short term gains. (Yes, other games like BG3 (Baldur's Gate 3) have been doing the same, but GTA 6's monetary gains will be on a whole other level. It will be undeniable, cannot be ignored.)

"Goodwill, passion, creativity, hardworking, ethics, etc are infinitely more valuable than cheap tactics to gain some money NOW and bankrupt the company in a few years. I can't count how many times a game dev studio has been shutdown / emptied out right after releasing a BANGER game in the past 2-3 years. Even Hi-Fi Rush, like, what?? Why are the people in leading positions the least knowledgeable, most disconnected and disillusioned people?

"*The company I'm working at doesn't have those weird 'executive' types and I couldn't be more glad - but for my colleagues, the industry really has to change."

Others have been giving their thoughts too.

One user said: "I just want this game. Only thing I'm looking forward to."

Moribunned said: "The same thing that happened after Baldur's Gate 3. Nothing. Like Larian, Rockstar will set another impossibly high mark like they always do and the industry won't even try to meet it."

ice_spice2020 said: "Imma be real with you, I don't think Rockstar Games will have any effect on the future of the industry. Other than the release of GTA 6, in which every publisher is avoiding, it won't change the industry one bit. After RDR2 (Red Dead Redemption 2) launched, name me one game that managed to reach the quality as RDR2 (other than graphics). The truth is everyone knows Rockstar will release a game no one has ever seen before, and they believe they won't even be close to the quality of Rockstar titles, so why bother?"

Former Rockstar president hails 'geniuses' behind GTA 6

Rockstar North's former president Leslie Benzies has hailed "geniuses" working on GTA 6 and can't wait to see the game.

Benzies played a huge role at Rockstar and was credited as a producer on every game from the studio from GTA 3 in 2001 to GTA 5 in 2013.

His exit came in 2016 and it was shrouded in legal battles. Benzies tried to claim unpaid royalties from Take-Two with the two parties eventually settling out of court in 2019.

Speaking to GAMINGBible about his upcoming game MindsEye with his studio Build a Rocket Boy, when asked about GTA 6, Benzies said: "[There's a] great amount of geniuses there always creating something new, unique and of a scale that very few others can actually pull off."

GTA 6 will be the first GTA game Benzies has not been credited on since GTA 2 which released 26 years ago in 1999.

Release date 'revealed' by leaker

A leaker has 'revealed' the release window of GTA 6.

Someone who goes by the name Detective Seeds, who also seemingly revealed information about when the heavily rumoured The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remake will release, claims GTA 6 will release at some point in "the middle of November".

There has been a lot of skepticism from GTA 6 fans about this leak which heightened after some thought the user's account had been deleted.

However recently explaining the situation, Detective Seeds said their X / Twitter and YouTube accounts were compromised after they clicked what they thought was a "legit" link to a "a review code request link for an upcoming game" which hacked their accounts.

Both their X / Twitter and YouTube accounts are now back online.

Trailer 2 release date hint from Rockstar's sister publisher

There is speculation a release date for GTA 6 trailer 2 has been hinted at by Rockstar Games' sister publisher 2K, which are both owned by Take-Two.

A release date of August 8 for Mafia: The Old Country appears to have leaked online ahead of the game being fully revealed on May 8.

This has led to two different speculative points across social media.

The first is that trailer 2 for GTA 6 could be imminent, or it could come a fair way after the Mafia: The Old Country reveal, as Take-Two would likely not want anything to detract from news about another one of its games.

The second is that this timeline for Mafia: The Old Country shows a three month marketing period for the game, leading to speculation trailer 2 might not land until July or August with the game on track to release on Autumn 2025.

Trailer 2 release details have not yet been officially confirmed.

Fans growing even more frustrated at wait for trailer 2

Fans seem to be growing increasingly impatient as the wait for GTA 6 trailer 2 goes on.

There's a popular post in the GTA 6 Subreddit of a brilliant meme summing up how people are feeling as it has now been 493 days without an update from Rockstar.

One user said: "Love is a long road."

Odd-Collection-2575 said: "Bruh it is killing me how long it's taking. I'm not gonna hold my breath tho, got plenty of other things to keep my mind occupied in the meantime."

Master_Inspector1450 said: "I am more excited for the actual game to be honest which if not delayed is only between five and nine months away."

Nintendo Switch 2 and GTA 6 to boost gaming industry to record levels

Newzoo, a games marketing intelligence firm, has shared a report claiming that the release of Nintendo Switch 2 and GTA 6 this year will boost revenue in the gaming industry to record levels.

According to the firm, by 2027, the gaming industry revenue will climb to $92.7bn, the highest it has ever been.

Nintendo fully revealed the Switch 2 during its livestream event on 2 April and preorders are currently live in the UK, with some retailers struggling to keep up with demand.

As for GTA 6, it is the most highly anticipated video game of all time, with some analysts going as far as declaring it the most anticipated form of media ever.

Read the full story here.

'I can only imagine how GTA 6 will look'

A popular post in the GTA 6 Subreddit is from Redditor GiraffeMiserable8350 who posted screenshots of Red Dead Redemption 2 on the PS5 and said: "I can only imagine how GTA 6 will look and it's crazy how all of these are 1440p."

And others have been sharing their thoughts.

ForsenBruh said: "I hope it will be better but here's a MASSIVE challenge in bringing RDR2 graphics to GTA 6 on PS5: the console must be able to render all of these graphics and NPCs while also flying at mega jet speeds through the air and roads. Not to say it isn't possible but they can't go that much beyond RDR2 where rendering had tons of time to catch up to your horseback speeds."

ItalianoMilkBoy said: "And the game looks 2x better than this on PC, which got it in 2019. With the full power of PS5, I'm excited with how it'll make this game look old, even though it's still one of the best looking games today."

VictorConrad95 said: "GTA 6 is definitely going to blow our ever loving minds."

Trailer 2 release details have fans saying the same thing

Comments recently made by Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick seem to have united fans in their thoughts over when trailer 2 is likely to release.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Zelnick said: "The anticipation for that title may be the greatest I've ever seen for an entertainment property.

"We want to maintain the anticipation and excitement... We found the better thing to do is provide marketing materials relatively close to the release window in order to create that excitement on the one hand and balance that excitement with unmet anticipation."

In a GTA 6 Subreddit post, Latter-Diet1127 said: "At this point, will the announcement / release of trailer 2 be completely random? I mean, is there anything that could tell us it might come one specific day? I have not seen a single theory or leak that said it could potentially come out within the next weeks."

And others have accepted they're going to have to wait until Rockstar is ready and are unlikely to be able to work it out beforehand.

Sneaux_ said: "It's quite literally in the air. There's no pattern from previous games, no leaks. NOTHING. We just live our lives and wait and it will be here before we know it."

IlgnerJuan said: "I prefer no announcement, just the trailer dropping on the day they decide to. It's gonna be epic and the world will stop to watch it."

Historical_Leg5998 said: "Announcing release dates for trailers would be below them at this point. It's probably not an exaggeration to say this is the most anticipated release in media. Not just gaming. The next 'thing' (provided there are no leaks) will be without fanfare, and will melt the internet."

'Would you still pay that much for it?'

With reputable Swiss retailer Brack previously listing GTA 6 preorders for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on its website for 99 Swiss Francs, which converts to £87 / $112 / €103, some Nintendo Switch 2 games costing up to $90 for physical copies and Donald Trump's tariffs sending shockwaves through the gaming industry, X / Twitter account @GTAVI_Countdown asked if social media users would "still pay that much for it [GTA 6]".

@BelovedBone said: "GTA 6 and 2K are the only games I'd spend $100 on."

@ygofresh said: "I would more than willingly pay 100 billys for this game only though. It'll be that good of a game, so worth it."

@Muffin_Man_CHI said: "It's the only game that is worth it but let me tell ya Nintendo I swear I am not buying a game worth 80 or 90 just for Mario Kart. I could literally get my Wii out and have more fun than that but other than that this game is like the only exception for a price like that."

@iCrazyTeddy said: "I’m buying it no matter what!"

@SLIGHTMAREEE said: "If nobody bought it they would be forced to put the price down."

Price leak resurfaces as Nintendo Switch 2 games cost causes uproar

The leaked price of GTA 6 from a reputable Swiss retailer that listed preorders for the game has resurfaced because of the furore surrounding the cost Nintendo Switch 2 games.

Nintendo is bumping up the prices of games on its new console, with Mario Kart World that's releasing at launch with the console on June 5 retailing digitally for $80, $10 above the current industry standard for top AAA games.

The price of GTA 6 has long been speculated, with gaming analysts previously saying the game could cost up to $100.

In March, reputable Swiss retailer Brack listedGTA 6 preorders for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on its website for 99 Swiss Francs, which converts to £87 / $112 / €103.

The listing has since been taken down but with the cost of Switch 2 games causing uproar on social media, there has been widespread speculation this could pave the way for GTA 6 to cost a similar amount or maybe even more.

The preorder price has not been officially confirmed by Rockstar yet.

GTA 6 release date news 'so close' as earnings call nears

A prominent X / Twitter account has said release date news on GTA 6 is "so close" as an expected Take-Two earnings call draws closer.

Take-Two hosts quarterly earnings calls where it shares its financial performance and company updates with shareholders and stakeholders.

In its portfolio, Take-Two owns Rockstar Games and 2K among others, and regularly shares updates on the release dates or windows of games.

Take-Two revealed in May 2024 during an earnings call that GTA 6 was scheduled to release in Autumn 2025 and at the time of writing, that officially remains on track.

If previous years are anything to go by, Take-Two will host its next earnings call in May and there will be news at the very least about if GTA 6 remains on track or not.

And @GameRollGTA said they think if the release window remains on track, "in my opinion it is 100 per cent NOT being delayed at any point".

@GameRollGTA posted: "If GTA 6 is going to be delayed, it will happen next month at the investors call. If Take-Two / Rockstar still reiterates Fall 2025, then in my opinion it is 100 per cent NOT being delayed at any point. Rockstar will have a very good idea of where they're at by then. We're so close."

This ties in with former Rockstar developer Obbe Vermeij saying Rockstar would not know if it would need to delay GTA 6 until a few months out from the initial release date.

In September 2024, he Tweeted: "The decision to delay GTA 4 was made four months or so before the original release date. Any further and it's hard to make the call.

"Rockstar is probably not in a position to determine whether they will hit 2025 until May-ish."

Take-Two CEO reveals trailer 2 and marketing schedule

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has revealed Rockstar's plans for trailer 2 and its marketing schedule.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Zelnick said: "The anticipation for that title may be the greatest I've ever seen for an entertainment property.

"We want to maintain the anticipation and excitement... We found the better thing to do is provide marketing materials relatively close to the release window in order to create that excitement on the one hand and balance that excitement with unmet anticipation."