GTA 6 pre-orders beat Take-Two's forecast, CEO says

Zelnick has explained why Take-Two has not raised its forecast even though demand is running above expectations. According to GTA BOOM, citing an interview with Bloomberg, the CEO said: "We chose not to change our guidance because we're just ten days away from release. We're going to know a whole lot more after that occurs." He gave GamesIndustry.biz a similar answer.

The article said the full-year forecast stayed at 8,000 to 8,200 million dollars, but not why. GTA BOOM adds that analysts polled by Bloomberg expected guidance closer to 8,640 million dollars, above the company's own range. Take-Two has not published its own pre-order figure for GTA 6.

Fomoera spells out the figures behind Take-Two's quarter, which the article only summarised. Net bookings of 1,601.3 million dollars fell short of the company's own guidance of 1,620 to 1,670 million. Accounting net revenue was 1,497 million, down from 1,773.8 million a year earlier but above Take-Two's forecast of 1,420 to 1,470 million, according to Fomoera.

So the quarter missed on bookings and beat on accounting revenue. Fomoera also points out that net bookings are not GTA 6 pre-orders. Take-Two has not measured how much each factor weighed in NBA 2K27's shortfall.

Take-Two expects to bring in as much as 3,500 million dollars (3.5 billion) during the GTA 6 launch period, according to @pcgamer on X. It is the first revenue figure tied to the release. Until now the company had only said that pre-orders were far above expectations.

The post does not say which quarter it covers, nor whether the figure means revenue or net bookings, and there is no breakdown by platform. The full-year net bookings outlook of 8,000 to 8,200 million dollars is unchanged.

Gadget Review reports a Sensor Tower estimate that finally puts a number on pre-orders: about 7.71 million digital pre-orders for GTA 6, with 751 million dollars in modeled revenue. PS5 would account for 74% of that demand and Xbox Series X|S for the remaining 26%, according to Gadget Review.

These are the analytics firm's calculations based on consumer activity, not figures from Rockstar or Take-Two, which still haven't published any. Sensor Tower also says US digital pre-orders are running 148% ahead of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 at the same point before its launch.

Zelnick has added a caveat on why NBA 2K27 missed its forecast. In an interview with IGN, the Take-Two CEO said the timing "may have affected performance", that it was a crowded period, and that GTA 6 coming "has had an influence on the consumer".

That qualifies what we wrote above: the dip is not only about the basketball game, since Zelnick himself admits GTA 6 weighed on September purchases. IGN reads this as some players putting off other games. Zelnick has not put a number on that effect.

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said on the November 9 earnings call that Rockstar has completed the development of GTA VI, according to The Verge. This article did not include that detail, and it comes after the two delays the game has already had.

Zelnick closed the call with another line: "I know you all are going to have a great time playing GTA VI while you're at home for the holidays." Launch remains set for November 19. The Verge notes that, going by Zelnick's words, a third delay does not look likely. Take-Two has given no further detail on the final state of development.

Rockstar Games opened pre-orders on June 25, 2026 and has already shown the map of Leonida, but it has never published how many copies were ordered. Until now there were only adjectives, with no figures to compare. On Monday the company put a first assessment on the record in its earnings.

Take-Two hasn't said. Zelnick told Variety that pre-orders are running far in excess of the company's expectations, and the earnings release, reported by GamesIndustry.biz, repeats that they are tracking far in excess of its initial expectations.

The CEO added a caution: Take-Two never claims success before it happens. He said the company will share more about how the game performs after launch.

Take-Two closed its second fiscal quarter with 1.60 billion dollars in net bookings, down 18% year on year. That landed slightly below what the company itself had advised.

The net loss was 54 million dollars, against 133.9 million in the same quarter a year earlier. The full-year net bookings outlook stays at 8 billion to 8.2 billion dollars.

The drop comes from NBA 2K27, not from GTA 6. According to GamesIndustry.biz, the basketball game had the second-best launch in the series by net bookings but still fell short of Take-Two's forecast. It has sold over 4 million units since its September 4 launch.

The Grand Theft Auto series did beat the forecast. GTA V has now sold nearly 235 million units, and recurrent consumer spending and average monthly GTA+ members both grew by a double-digit percentage. GTA 6 hasn't launched yet, so its sales aren't in this quarter.

GTA 6 launches Thursday, November 19, 2026 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. Variety lists 79.99 dollars for the standard edition and 99.99 dollars for the Ultimate.

For you, nothing practical changes: strong pre-orders don't move the date or the price. Preloading starts November 12, and Rockstar says any pre-order or purchase before November 20 includes the Vice City Vintage Pack.

Take-Two expects operating expenses to rise 21% year on year in the third quarter, mainly because of marketing for the game. Expect more campaign in the coming days.

Rockstar hasn't published pre-order figures, and Zelnick only promises more information once the game is out. On a PC version, Nintendo Switch 2 or a full physical edition, he said information comes from the labels, meaning Rockstar, and gave nothing away.

The next clue arrives on November 19. If you want the Vintage Pack, pre-order or buy before the 20th.

How many GTA 6 pre-orders are there?

Take-Two hasn't given figures. Zelnick only tells Variety they are far above expectations.

Does the GTA 6 release date change after the earnings?

No. Take-Two keeps November 19, 2026 and its full-year outlook of 8 billion to 8.2 billion dollars.

Why did Take-Two's net bookings fall?

Because NBA 2K27 fell short of the company's forecast, according to GamesIndustry.biz.