Have you heard the news? Grand Theft Auto 6 has been delayed again. The open-world crime simulator is no longer releasing in May 2026 and will now instead launch in November 2026. So why the delay? According to Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, it’s because Rockstar Games is seeking “perfection” and the studio’s Metacritic track record is proof that this strategy works.
During a November 6 earnings call, Zelnick, who leads Rockstar parent Company Take-Two, was asked about how the GTA 6 delay was affecting the studio and what Rockstar Games was doing at this stage in development. While Zelnick declined to get into the “inner workings” of the developer, he did talk about the company’s culture and focus on making critically acclaimed games.
“I think the culture of Rockstar [Games] is extraordinary, and we’re all pushing hard to to seek perfection,” said Zelnick during the earnings call. Take-Two’s stock sank around 7 percent after news of the delay was made public. The CEO then praised how highly rated Rockstar-developed games are on review aggregator Metacritic.
“I mean, the Metacritic scores of Rockstar releases are, generally, speaking, not generally I mean, with very few exceptions, have been over 95,” explained Zelnick. “GTA V, as you know, has been the standard bearer, not just for our company, but for the industry through three console generations, and to this day, is still, I would argue, the most technologically advanced title in the marketplace, despite [being more than a] decade old, and that doesn’t happen by accident.”
I’d quibble a bit here and point out that only seven of Rockstar’s video game releases have hit 95 and only 4 got a higher score on Metacritic, with most landing in the high 80s and low 90s. But there’s no denying that over the last 15 years Rockstar Games has mostly produced critically acclaimed blockbusters like Red Dead Redemption, GTA V, and Red Dead Redemption II.
Zelnick added that Rockstar and all of Take-Two’s studios are focused on “seeking excellence, teamwork and kindness.” Not sure how reported efforts at union busting factor into that, but it’s a nice sentiment.
Of course, the problem is that with each passing year and each delay, the expectations for Grand Theft Auto 6 grow and grow. The video game industry isn’t standing still and waiting for Rockstar to make the next big open-world masterpiece. The genre has continued to evolve thanks to games like Elden Ring, Kingdom Come Deliverance, Far Cry, Tears of the Kingdom, Death Stranding 2, Forza Horizon 5, and others. What people expect from a big, AAA open-world video game has changed a lot since 2013’s GTA V and 2019’s Red Dead Redemption 2. Will Rockstar’s pursuit of “perfection” make it harder for the studio to keep up with the rest of the industry, leading to a game that feels dated? Or will the studio innovate and help reshape the genre it practically created? We’ll find out in November 2026. Probably. Maybe. We’ll see.
