We’re closing in on Grand Theft Auto 6‘s launch, which includes store shelves stocked with empty boxes. Physical cases for the PlayStation 5 version of the game are already appearing in the wild ahead of stores being allowed to sell them on November 12.
Photos of a shrink-wrapped copy of GTA 6 for PS5 appeared on the GTA6unmoderrated subreddit earlier today and were apparently posted by a German retail worker. It looked exactly how you’d expect it to, with a white label around a translucent blue plastic case. A warning label on the front of the box art reminds consumers that there’s no actual disc inside the physical box, and that an internet connection is required in order to redeem the digital download using the code inside.
A look at the physical Grand Theft Auto VI box
Image: u/IseeIceTea pic.twitter.com/qT9OhuFVwa
— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) November 7, 2026
The user has since deleted the thread and their Reddit account, potentially worried that the leak might be traced back to them given Take-Two’s track record and the high-alert status everyone will be on in the lead up to the game’s November 19 launch. Of course, not shipping the game on a physical disc is one way of cutting down on these exact kind of leaks that can arise from stores breaking street dates on warehouse workers potentially stealing early copies.
GTA 6 is available to being preloading on November 10, with physical copies being distributed starting November 12 for those who pre-ordered them. People will be able to take the box home a full week before the game is actually live on North American servers. Take-Two’s decision not to release GTA 6 on a disc gives us our first test run of the disc-less future Sony has promised starting in 2028.
Some publishers will likely also use codes in boxes to maintain a similar presence in brick-and-mortar stores. They’ll leave diehard fans with the option to go around collecting empty display boxes if they wish. I will certainly be one of them.
