GTA 6 release date finally might be uncovered by Rockstar financials

Grand Theft Auto 6 might finally be released by the end of the 2024 financial year, according to a number of analysts looking into Take-Two Interactive's acquisition of Zynga.

It was announced on January 10th that the parent company of Rockstar Games, Take-Two Interactive, had entered into an agreement to purchase mobile gaming giant Zynga for an estimated $12.7 billion – the biggest video game acquisition ever (at the time). Alongside this, Take-Two said that the company's compound annual growth rate will grow by 14% through 2024 (via Axios). 

Doug Creutz, an analyst for US investment bank Cowen, analysed this growth and anticipates that Take-Two consumer spending would equate to $9 billion via bookings. This is believed to be related to "a likely GTA 6 launch in FY24." It follows a similar financial target set back in 2011 by the company, which lead up to the release of GTA V in September 2013 (though the target was initially thought for 2012 or early 2013, so a delay can happen). 

"There are only a handful of titles that can ... provide management with the confidence to put out such a strong guidance; we believe there is at least one Rockstar IP set to be released by FY24," an analyst from Jefferies further noted to Axios.

This lines up with a Kotaku report in April 2020 that pointed to GTA 6 being in early development, as well as several industry insiders suggesting that the game wouldn't be released until 2024 at the earliest. The 2024 financial year runs from April 1st, 2023 to March 31st, 2024. 

A PlayStation 5 version of GTA V is next on the cards for Rockstar in March, so it's unlikely we will hear more until later this year. History suggests an announcement in October is most likely, which you can find as part of T3's official GTA 6 hub.