GTA 6 delay; How many times did the other Rockstar games each lag?

The release of GTA 6, which was previously scheduled for May 26, 2026, has now been postponed to November 19, 2026 (November 28, 1405). Disappointing news for fans, but not too surprising for followers of Rockstar’s history, as the studio is practically known for multi-stage delays.

After announcing the delay, Strauss Zelnick, CEO of Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two, told investors:

We have never regretted delaying the release of games because the end result has always been worth it.

This is the second time that GTA 6 has been delayed. The game was initially targeted for the fall of 2025, then it was postponed to May 2026, and now it has been delayed by another six months; Exactly the same model that Red Dead Redemption 2 followed. That game was originally scheduled for the second half of 2017, and after two six-month delays, it was released in October 2018.

GTA 5 was also delayed only once, about six months, and was released in September 2013, but even that was delayed from its initial announcement. The PC version of this game was also delayed three times. Also, from Bully, which was delayed a year, to LA Noire, which was delayed three times, and Max Payne 3, which was delayed four times, Rockstar in general has a long history of delays.

But why is the second delay of GTA 6 so painful for fans? There are several reasons. This time, Rockstar had announced the exact release date, not just a time frame, which made fans more confident. The gap between the introduction of the game (the first trailer) and the final release will now be three years, which is one year longer than the usual cycle of GTA 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2, and most importantly, this game will be released 13 years after GTA 5 and 8 years after Red Dead Redemption 2, which is an unprecedented gap in the history of the studio.

In an era where the development of AAA games is becoming more complicated and expensive every day, Rockstar’s constant obsession with details and perfectionism has made GTA 6 the longest project in the company’s history. If all goes according to the new plan, November 2026 will finally be the time to return to the crazy world of Vice City.

Source: Polygon