Take Two Shares Skyrocket Following GTA 6 Release Date Confirmation

3 days ago 4

Published May 22, 2026, 7:55 AM EDT

Scott Baird is a Staff Writer at DualShockers with over a decade of experience writing about video games, board games, and tabletop RPGs. He has been writing professionally since 2013 and covering games since 2018, with work spanning news, reviews, lists, guides, interviews, and event coverage.

Before joining DualShockers, Scott contributed to publications including The Escapist, Dexerto, TheGamer, CBR, and Gamepur. He has also worked as a full-time Pokémon writer at Dexerto and a features writer at TheGamer. Scott holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Film & TV Production.

Take-Two Interactive has doubled down on Grand Theft Auto 6 hitting its November release date, which has caused the stock price to surge in response, with expectations high that it'll be a huge hit.

Grand Theft Auto 6 has already faced several delays, and with Take-Two/Rockstar printing money through Grand Theft Auto Online, the company has no reason to shove it out the door early. This is good from a quality perspective, as Grand Theft Auto 6 will likely launch in a stable state, but it has left fans worried that further delays are possible.

GTA 6 Is Ruining the 2026 Gaming Year

A looming presence for every other game out there.

During Take-Two Interactive's most recent earnings call, CEO Strauss Zelnick confirmed that Grand Theft Auto 6 will hit its November 19 release date and that the game's marketing will begin sometime in Summer 2026. Naturally, this confirmation has excited investors, causing a huge spike in Take-Two's stock price, as shared by Shinobi602 on Twitter/X.

Take-Two Has Started The GTA 6 Hype Train

GTA 6 Spoofing Popular Websites, Apps In Apparent Leak

While a Grand Theft Auto 6 delay is still possible, it seems like Take-Two is gearing up for its release. If fans get to see the mythical third trailer within the next few weeks, then that will be seen as confirmation that 2026 is the year Grand Theft Auto 6 launches.

The big question dominating the industry is the price, as many expect Grand Theft Auto 6 to sell for $80 USD, which would set a new default price point for major releases. Video game publishers are going to be in for a rude awakening if they think all games have the same value, as Grand Theft Auto 6 can justify a high price point, especially if its online is anything like its predecessors, but most people won't be willing to pay $80 for a single game.

While a Grand Theft Auto 6 delay is still possible, it seems like Take-Two is gearing up for its release.

The double-down on the Grand Theft Auto 6 release date is also going to affect the holiday season, which is already looking like a ghost town, as the industry as a whole is going to skipping out on its most lucrative period. Sure, not everyone is going to care about Grand Theft Auto 6, but few publishers are going to risk releasing anything that competes with it, except maybe Nintendo.

Once pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto 6 go live, that's when fans can truly lock in and prepare for its release. Until then, people just have to be patient and hope the rug doesn't get pulled out from under them again.