GTA 6 second delay 'expected' by fans for 1 good reason

You should all be well aware by now that Grand Theft Auto VI is no longer set to land this year.

Rockstar Games previously delayed the game out of its fall 2025 slot, revealing that it’ll instead land on 26 May 2026.

Naturally, that announcement came alongside a lot of disappointment but that disappointment very quickly dissipated when Rockstar dropped GTA VI’s long-awaited second trailer.

Fair to say, I’m not quite sure I’ve seen hype like what took place following the launch of that trailer.

Heck, it left me counting down the days and I wouldn’t consider myself a GTA superfan by any means.

Little else has been said since, with Rockstar pretty much going back into hiding as it finalises the game.

The studio did confirm that trailer two consisted of 50% gameplay, something that came as a shock to many of us.

Take-Two Interactive’s CEO Strauss Zelnick, the parent company of Rockstar, has since surfaced to share his excitement over GTA VI’s ambition, adding that he sees no reason why the game should be delayed again.

According to Zelnick, GTA VI is in a fantastic place with these additional months simply providing space for final polish.

Despite this, GTA fans are convinced that we’ll see one further additional delay.

Why? Well, both GTA V and Red Dead Redemption 2 were delayed twice (although one of GTA V’s delays was internal and thus never confirmed).

I can understand the fandom's way of thinking, but this isn’t exactly proof that GTA VI will follow the same path; these are all different projects with different development journeys.

GTA V landed just one year after Max Payne 3, two years after LA Noire, and three years after Red Dead Redemption.

Rockstar was much busier with a jam-packed output.

Red Dead Redemption 2 had slightly more breathing room, landing five years after GTA V, but Rockstar had been supporting the newly launched GTA Online within those five years.

GTA VI has even more breathing room. Rockstar hasn’t launched a new mainline game since Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2018 - that’s seven years ago.

Surely, that means GTA VI is less likely to receive a second delay?

“It’s happened for both GTAV and Red Dead 2. Both were slated to release in the spring of the respective years they came out. They were both delayed twice,” wrote Reddit user PapasGotABrandNewNag.

“My advice to you younger folks. Just don’t even think about it. I obsessed over GTAV for the two years in between the release date and the launch. Same with Red Dead. They both exceeded my expectations. It will be worth the wait.”

“Ultimately what we need is patience,” replied simbabarrelroll.

We’re on the final countdown. We’ve got this.