Rockstar Games has finally addressed the past week’s extraordinary spate of Grand Theft Auto 6 leaks, describing the situation as “heartbreaking” for its development team and “unfortunate” for fans.
In a statement posted to social media, the developer acknowledged that its intended experience for players “may now be impacted by some spoilers”, but reiterated GTA 6’s previously-confirmed launch date of November 19.
The past week has seen more than a dozen gameplay clips appear online, posted by an individual or group that has claimed to be leaking material to highlight the death of physical media and the impact this will have on game ownership, while also charging fans to vote on further leaks using cryptocurrency, in what is widely-seen as a money-making exercise.
Today’s statement by Rockstar makes no mention of its efforts to try and stop these leaks from occuring, or the legal processes it has begun to try and determine the identity of the leaker(s). Indeed, the statement could be read as an admission that the leaks will likely continue — and worsen, with story spoilers likely — at least in the short term.
As if to confirm this, a 15th clip of GTA 6 has just been posted online, within minutes of Rockstar’s statement being made public. It show the leaker driving at night, and then a clip of a cutscene with GTA 6 co-protagonist Lucia. This is particularly noteworthy as the leaker has, so far, only shown off gameplay with the character of Jason, though has suggested that a Lucia story prologue could be leaked in future. Watermarked text includes: “Show support trade $Cyberleek,” in reference to the leaker’s virtual currency, and “let’s get 50m trading volume.”
“We know that many of you have been waiting to hear from us regarding the events of the past week,” Rockstar Games wrote. “It would be an understatement to say that having videos of Grand Theft Auto 6 gameplay leak in this way has been heartbreaking for our team, and this is obviously not how we intednd for you to see the game after all this time.
“We are very sorry that everything has taken as long as it has — from getting the game finished (nearly there!) to sharing more details and official gameplay, and providing the community with everything you want to know.
“We are very excited for everyone to see the Extended Look tomorrow,” Rockstar continued. “It has taken longer than we wanted to get it ready, but as with everything we do, we know we need to exceed your expetations, and we are determined to deliver at the level you expect and deserve. While it is unfortunate that the intended game experience may now be impacted by some spoilers, we hope that everyone will wait a bit longer to experience the game for themselves on November 19.
“We want to thank everyone in the community who has reached out with messages of support this past week — your words have meant more to this team than you can imagine. Ultimately, we are making this game for you, and without you, we would not have the privilege of making games. We look forward to sharing more with you soon.”
From a Take-Two and Rockstar perspective, significant damage is being done as the leaks continue, with numerous sections of the GTA 6’s world now revealed. More worrying still, according to Bloomberg, Rockstar still doesn’t know how these leaks happened, nor who is behind them. And while there are no plans to shift this week’s big Netflix reveal, Bloomberg reported that there is frustration and anger internally at recent events, with management sending morale-boosting emails to staff.
Former Rockstar Games technical director Obbe Vermeij, however, downplayed the damage caused by the leaks. Vermeij, who worked at Rockstar North from 1995 to 2009, took to social media to say the Hot Coffee scandal was much more damaging than these GTA 6 leaks.
Rockstar Games will fully reveal GTA 6 gameplay itself later this week via the Grand Theft Auto 6 Extended Look, a lengthy and official deut that will be released exclusively on Netflix for six hours, before arriving on other platforms such as YouTube. Find out exactly when the GTA 6 Extended Look will be available where you are right here.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
