Grand Theft Auto VI has generated more than $1 billion in preorders just days before its release, pushing Rockstar Games parent company Take-Two Interactive into a historic financial position.
Market research firm Sensor Tower reports that more than 11.27 million units of the open-world title have been preordered, generating nearly $1.1 billion in revenue ahead of the scheduled November 19 release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, according to Mashable.
Both Sony and Microsoft confirmed that the game has broken all-time digital pre-order records across their respective storefronts. These figures represent a significant surge in interest, with estimates rising from approximately 7.71 million units earlier in the month.
Grand Theft Auto VI is now only one week away! Thank you to everyone in the community for your incredible support. There’s still time to pre-order and pre-load so you’re ready on launch day. Code-in-box versions are also available now for pick-up at retailers worldwide. pic.twitter.com/au3uAf6p5w
The standard edition of the game is priced at $79.99, while the Ultimate Edition lists for $99.99, with the higher-tier version emerging as the top seller among consumers.
“Preorders for Grand Theft Auto VI are tracking far in excess of our initial expectations, and we know that the numbers will speak for themselves soon enough.”
Strauss Zelnick, CEO of Take-Two Interactive
The preorder milestones arrived alongside Take-Two’s fiscal second-quarter financial results. For the period ended September 30, the publisher reported revenue of $1.5 billion, down from $1.77 billion a year earlier, while its net loss narrowed to $0.29 per share from $0.73 per share. CFO Lainie Goldstein characterized the company’s preorder volume as “extraordinary.”
Despite the bookings miss, investors drove Take-Two shares up 8.31% to $224.64 on November 10. Management reiterated its fiscal 2027 net bookings guidance of $8 billion to $8.2 billion. For the upcoming third quarter, which captures the launch, the company guided net bookings to a range of $3.35 billion to $3.50 billion, with expected net income of $250 million to $276 million. The company aims to end the fiscal year in a net cash position.
Financial institutions have evaluated what the release requires to satisfy shareholder expectations. Bank of America analyst Omar Dessouky estimated that the game needs to generate at least $1.9 billion in sales to meet fiscal 2027 projections, maintaining a ‘Buy’ rating and a $330 price target on the stock.
A US Army battalion is reportedly offering troops four days off to play GTA 6 as an incentive to re-enlist The signed document says soldiers who re-enlist between August 1 and November 14 can receive a four-day GTA 6 pass pic.twitter.com/VoGo38knrd
Dessouky projects that Take-Two will release initial sales figures by at least November 23, though a potential announcement as early as November 20 could indicate particularly strong first-day performance.
Analysts emphasize that the game is a “one-of-one“stock, with 33 analysts tracked by Bloomberg maintaining”buy” ratings. While some caution that the company’s stock currently prices in significant growth, the stock’s 52-week range has fluctuated between $183.86 and $265.94, with the high set on July 6, 2026.
GTA 6 pre-orders continues to smash records, with nearly 1 million copies sold 2 days in a row. According to Sensor Tower, 12M+ units have been sold so far with $1B+ in revenue. pic.twitter.com/CjQ4PDtBa1
Ahead of the launch, Sony and Microsoft opened preloads for owners of digital copies, issuing warnings about network congestion. Platform operators and analysts have said that the extraordinary demand could strain digital storefronts.
To mitigate potential issues, platform operators have advised players to queue their downloads well in advance. The hype has extended beyond digital platforms, with a music festival scheduled in Miami featuring performances from artists including Cardi B, Travis Scott, and Justice, who composed the game's score.
The scale of the launch has even influenced labor trends. According to industry surveys, 18% of salaried workers reported plans to take time off on the release date to play, with requests for time off running 13% higher than for comparable days in 2024 and 2025. “Hollywood should look at the hours as closely as the dollars,” The Game Awards founder Geoff Keighley told The Hollywood Reporter.
