'GTA 6' release might happen later this year

"GTA 6" was briefly mentioned by Rockstar Games owner, Take-Two, during the company's earning briefing. While CEO Straus Zelnick did not mention a release date for the title but only assured that the development of the upcoming title is well underway, there are speculations that it could happen later this year.

The CEO said that Rockstar Games' team is doing its best to make "GTA 6" just as successful as the previous games in the franchise. "Rockstar Games team is determined to once again set creative benchmarks for the series, our industry, and for all entertainment, just as the label has done with every one of their frontline releases," Zelnick said, according to Game Spot.

Not much is known about the upcoming title, but "GTA 6" rumours abound. For instance, there are speculations that a Latina woman will be one of the two lead characters in the game. Other rumours state that it will be set in Vice City on a map that will continuously expand over time.

There are also various speculations about the "GTA 6" release date. While others believe that it would take at least two years before developers wrap things up and get ready for release, some say that it could happen sooner than that.

For years, fans of the "Grand Theft Auto" franchise have been clamouring for the release of the highly anticipated "GTA 6" only to be met with complete silence from its developers. However, Rockstar Games surprised fans early this year when it finally decided to break its silence and confirm that the title is being developed.

The acknowledgement comforted fans who have been previously hoping for years that Rockstar Games would work on a sequel to "GTA 5." While no mention of a specific "GTA 6" release date was made, the company's previous statement might give fans a clue about the progress of the game's development.

"Over the past few years, we have been steadily moving more development resources towards the next entry in the Grand Theft Auto series — understanding more than ever the need to exceed players' expectations and for this next entry to be the best it can possibly be," Rockstar Games said.

The clue here is in that "over the past few years" phrase, which could mean that the devs must be pretty far ahead by now. There are even speculations that the game could be launched later this year at around the same time as the company's second-quarter earnings call.

"Around November, Take-Two Interactive will likely host its Q2 earnings call as that's around the time the company historically holds this event," ComicBook wrote. "It would be a pretty good look to showcase the new Grand Theft Auto before reporting the company's financials. Rockstar also announced both Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 in October of 2011 and 2016, respectively. Both games received small teasers to announce the reveal, which came in the days after. Even 2021's GTA trilogy got announced in October!"

Of course, this is just speculation for now, as the same source also cautioned fans that the developer might announce a "GTA 6" release date only to postpone its actual launch as it had done so in the past. "It wouldn't be surprising if Rockstar confirms Grand Theft Auto VI will release in fall 2023 to drum up some hype, but push it back to 2024, as they have historically ended up delaying most of their games," ComicBook added.