Don't Worry About GTA 6's Delay, It's For The Best

GTA 6 main character pointing a gun with Vice City in the background

Published 4 days ago

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Recently,Grand Theft Auto 6 was delayed a second time, pushing the highly anticipated game's release to November 19, 2026, instead of its original May 2026 target launch. This push to the last quarter of next year has frustrated fans who've already waited a considerable time for the nextGTA, but it shouldn't be surprising. Rockstar has a tendency to delay their biggest titles, and usually for good reason.

For better and for worse,game delays are fairly common for AAA titles surrounding many recent releases. Even with some delays, games still end up launching with a plethora of problems, arguably the greatest example beingCyberpunk 2077 back in 2020. With thesheer scale ofGTA 6, a delay was almost inevitable, but there are tendencies from its developer that make the patience for this title more bearable.

GTA 5 Was Delayed Once Before Its Release

Last Entry In The Series Didn't Have A Perfect Launch Time

Key art of Michael, Trevor, and Franklin from GTA 5.

GTA 5 is often considered one of the best in the series, with the largest map developer Rockstar Games had created at the time.The size and detail of this game's setting was huge, demanding almost five years of building, polishing, debugging, and refining before it could be released in 2013.

There are a variety of factors involved with bothGTA 5 andGTA 6's respective delays, but one common theory for the latter could be alleged attempts at punishing unionization at Rockstar Games that resulted in the sudden layoff of many employees and developers.

Players had to wait from Spring 2013 to Fall 2013 to playGTA 5, waiting nearly half the year due to the major delay for the highly anticipated sequel. WithGTA 4's popularity before it, fans were just as excited aboutGTA 5 as they are aboutGTA 6 now. Much of this delay was to polish many of the game's ambitious qualities, which still had some issues upon its release.

This trend continues with every new PlayStation, Xbox, and PC port for the game, resulting in nearly every version ofGTA 5 being delayedin some way. Going back further, early reports ofGTA 5's existence as early as 2009 also predicted a 2012 release date, which also got pushed back as the game was being built.

Other Rockstar Games Have Launched Later Than Expected For Extra Polish

Anticipated Series Are Never Immune To Delays If They Need Them

The cast of characters from key art in Red Dead Redemption 2.

TheGrand Theft Autoseries isn't the only one from Rockstar's catalog that's experienced delays over the years. TheRed Dead Redemptiongames have also led to frustrating moments for players, specificallyRed Dead Redemption 2.The secondRed Dead Redemptionwas delayed three times, twice internally and one publicly, surpassing the number of timesGTA 6 has been delayed now.

The first timeRDR2 was pushed back was from Fall 2017 to Spring 2018, moving it back only a few months, under the amountGTA 5was delayed. However,the game's second delay moved it from Spring 2018 to October 2018, nearly a year after the first initial release window was planned. Once again, this was due to Rockstar's attempt to perfect their product, and the results speak for themselves.

RDR2's massive success and acclaim arguably still remains the best that Rockstar has ever received, even more thanGTA 5 in some ways.The extra commitment to polishing a game to meet already high standards is something Rockstar seems used to, making it seem like these delays are planned far in advance regardless of other set launch dates.

GTA 6's Two Delays Represent A Standard Pattern With Rockstar

No Cause For Alarm If History Repeats Itself

The multitude of delays from Rockstar's past games have never seemed to impact their eventual popularity and success when their launch does eventually arrive. BothRDR2andGTA 5 are some of the most revered open world experiences in modern gaming today, and have amassed the enormous crowd of fans that now seekGTA 6's release with an almost feral fervor.

By comparison,GTA 6 has a similar delay schedule toRed Dead Redemption 2, implying that this last delay will be the final one for the game. Hopefully, just asRDR2 released in the Fall one year after its first planned date,GTA 6 will also launch one year later in Fall 2026. Even if there is a third delay, it is no doubt in service of continued polishing and refinement of the game's scale to match what players are spending quite a lot of money on.

Even with many delays seeking to debug and clean upall ofGTA 6's features, aspects of the game could still draw player criticisms on launch, such as a ridiculous file size, performance issues, or online elements baked into the title.

While looking back through history,GTA 6's delays are nothing new, and more than likely should have been just as anticipated as the game itself. Although players may be irritated now at the game's date being pushed back further,Grand Theft Auto 6 is aiming to be the hottest game of 2026 so far, and conversations about how long it took to get in players' hands will die down fast once it comes out.