It's Officially the Calm Before the Storm for GTA 6

On June 25, Grand Theft Auto 6 will be opening pre-orders, subsequently sending shockwaves throughout the gaming industry, and it appears that Rockstar Games is getting its ducks in a row in preparation. GTA 6 has the privilege of being one of, if not the most, anticipated games of all time, and the next few months could be significant for Rockstar and the industry at large.

The time has finally come for GTA 6 to actually feel real and imminent. On June 18, Rockstar Games announced that Grand Theft Auto 6 pre-orders would start on June 25, and that announcement alone garnered a colossal number of views and likes across every social media platform where it was posted. Joy and discourse about GTA 6 seemingly locking in a release date for real this time hit the internet; however, that is likely only the start of even bigger discussions and events coming very soon.

Why Pre-Ordering GTA 6 Next Week is a Bad Move

Rockstar confirms that Grand Theft Auto 6 pre-orders begin on June 25, but waiting might be the better option for the time being.

Rockstar Braces Itself For A Massive Moment When GTA 6 Pre-Orders Go Live

Ahead of GTA 6 opening pre-orders on June 25, it appears that Rockstar is clearing the landing across its social media in preparation for what will likely be a massive post announcing that fans can finally reserve their copy of the game, and potentially a trailer. Oddly enough, the studio has elected to post this week’s new Red Dead Online bounty hunt and rewards on its BiliBili account rather than its Twitter account, and the Twitter account itself has been dormant since GTA 6 revealed its cover art on June 18. Anyone who follows Rockstar Games on Twitter is likely to notice that the account is fairly active on the platform, often posting tweets and updates regarding GTA Online, and it isn’t rare to see a retweet now and then for other developers, so this silence likely signifies that the company knows it’s in the calm before the storm.

Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.

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If for no other reason, June 25 will be a massive day by sheer virtue of the fact that it starts GTA 6‘s pre-order and marketing period. Fans have been waiting a literal decade to simply buy this game, and when GTA is in full marketing mode, it’s an event filled with billboards, commercials, trailers, and every other type of advertising a video game could possibly use, and fans generally tend to love it. In some ways, the marketing for a GTA game is part of the GTA experience as a whole. There is no doubt that Rockstar’s upcoming Twitter post announcing the start of pre-orders is likely to break records for likes and retweets, especially if the game’s YouTube trailers are anything to go by.

On the industry level, however, GTA 6 could likely change everything once pre-orders open on Thursday. The GTA 6 price panic has been at the forefront of fans’ and industry experts’ minds, and once the big question of what a game with the budget, size, and hype of Grand Theft Auto 6 is worth at retail in 2026 is answered, it could set a new standard for the industry as a whole. Many experts believe this is the perfect moment for the industry to capitalize on $80 games as the norm or even a $100 base price if Rockstar Games does it, and they should too. Come June 25, the online discourse on what makes a game worth its price point will change completely.

What’s more, a few skeptics think GTA 6 could still be delayed by a last-minute announcement on June 25; however, if there is no delay this Thursday, that means this fall will be a crazy one for the gaming industry. It seems like every game slated for a fall release is getting out of November’s GTA 6 blast radius by launching in September instead, absolutely cramming that month with releases that could have had some breathing room if it were any other year. June 25 is going to be huge for GTA 6 and perhaps even the industry as a whole, regardless of what happens on that date.