The wait is over — we finally know when Grand Theft Auto VI will launch worldwide on PlayStation 5, the widely-rumoured PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X and Series S.
Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of Rockstar Games, all-but confirmed the sixth instalment in the Grand Theft Auto franchise will debut in late 2025. The announcement came as part of the latest financial report from the entertainment brand, worth $24.9 billion, in which it narrowed the previous release window of 2025 down to the more specific — but still frustratingly vague — timeframe of "fall 2025".
That means Grand Theft Auto fans will have waited 12 years between instalments in the best-selling series.
"As we enter Fiscal 2025 with positive momentum, we expect to deliver Net Bookings of $5.55 to $5.65 billion," the earnings report states. "Our outlook reflects a narrowing of Rockstar Games’ previously established window of Calendar 2025 to Fall of Calendar 2025 for Grand Theft Auto VI.
"We are highly confident that Rockstar Games will deliver an unparalleled entertainment experience, and our expectations for the commercial impact of the title continue to increase."
GTA 6, stylised as Grand Theft Auto VI, returns the action to the fictional city of Vice City, which is Rockstar Games' satirical version of Miami that featured in the 2002 GTA release of the same name ROCKSTAR GAMES The New York City-based company also confirmed that Grand Theft Auto V has passed the milestone of 200 million units sold. That eye-watering total now accounts for almost 50% of the entire Grand Theft Auto franchise, which was launched back in November 1997.
Grand Theft Auto V has now appeared on three console generations, starting with the Xbox 360 and Sony PS3 back in September 2013. An upgraded version of the game launched on the latest crop of video game consoles, Xbox Series X|S and Sony PS5, in March 2022 with support for 4K Ultra HD visuals, ray-tracing, 60 frames-per-second, and 3D audio. The continued popularity of the game is partly attributed to GTA Online.
Industry watchers have suggested that Rockstar Games could announce an exact release date for Grand Theft Auto VIin the next explosive trailer for the video game, widely-tipped to be coming this summer.
Although the E3 tradeshow — once a one-stop-shop for the biggest announcements from every console manufacturer — has been canned, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo, EA, and Bethesda continue to hold online events with blockbuster new game announcements, trailers, and news on incoming updates to existing titles between May and June each year in its stead. Summer Games Fest could also see more GTA 6 news announced.
Experts believe the next instalment in the Grand Theft Auto franchise could break its own record sales numbers. Its predecessor, Grand Theft Auto V, still holds the crown for the best opening week of sales in video game history — raking in $1.15bn (£1.2bn) in five days. It has gone on to become the second biggest game of all-time, although it's still 100 million copies behind the Gold Medalist, Minecraft.
But many like Dmitri Williams, a video game business expert and professor at University of Southern California, expect the long-awaited follow-up to perform even better. He said: "The brand is as strong or stronger than it was before, but additionally the game industry is larger. If it maintains the same slice of the pie, it's going to be big, because it will come from a bigger pie.
"The games industry is simply massive globally, and is no single genre or platform. It's so large and so varied that even fractions of it are larger than whole parallel industries like movies.”
Grand Theft Auto V first launched 11 years ago on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Since then, the popular title has appeared on another two console generations, with an upgraded version of the decade-old video game launching on the latest consoles from Xbox and Sony in early 2022
GETTY IMAGES
The global value of the games industry is roughly $250bn (£199bn).
Sony is tipped to capitalise on the excitement around the next Rockstar Games title by launching an improved PlayStation 5 console with upgraded graphics and a tweaked case design.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
The next instalment of the popular Grand Theft Auto series will take gamers back to Vice City, which last appeared in 2006's Vice City Stories. Rockstar Games has already confirmed the franchise will use a female protagonist for the first time since 2000, known as Lucia.
Little is known about the plot of the satirical action-adventure game, but it's widely expected to mirror the misadventures of Bonnie and Clyde across a fictional US State that spoofs on Florida, dubbed Leonida.