While the entire gaming world holds its collective breath for GTA 6, one PlayStation executive thinks the industry might be overreacting to Rockstar’s upcoming juggernaut. As developers scramble to avoid the game’s Fall 2025 release window like it’s radioactive, there’s a refreshing counterpoint emerging from an unexpected source.
It’s been over 15 months since that record-breaking first trailer dropped, and Rockstar has maintained their signature silence ever since. Meanwhile, Take-Two keeps reassuring investors about that Fall 2025 release window, though plenty of gamers remain skeptical after watching virtually every major title of the last five years face delays.
But amid all this anticipation and anxiety, PlayStation’s indie boss has a surprisingly optimistic take that might just change how we view gaming’s most anticipated title in years.
Why PlayStation thinks GTA 6 won’t crush the competition
The fear of releasing anywhere near GTA 6 has become almost comical in gaming circles. Studios are treating Rockstar’s upcoming blockbuster like a category 5 hurricane, evacuating their release schedules months in advance. But PlayStation’s Greg Rice, who also serves as lead curator for Day of the Devs, sees things differently.
Speaking to GamesRadar+ at the GDC, Rice acknowledged the concerns while offering a more nuanced perspective:
[GTA 6 is] going to be the best, awesome, giant game for the year, for sure. I hear a lot of the opposite of devs, worried about it sucking all the space out. ‘I don’t want to launch during GTA week or even month, because that’s all anyone’s gonna be playing.
This fear isn’t unfounded. History is witness to the fact that when Rockstar Games drops a new title, it doesn’t just make waves—it creates tsunamis. But Rice believes there’s room for everyone at the table:
[It’s] 100% true [that GTA 6 will] do gangbusters and sell millions of copies. But I think the industry is matured enough that there’s space for that and for other things as well. It’s gonna be a combination of ‘there will be games that will be successful around GTA time because they’re totally different,’ but it’ll also bring a lot more people back into the ecosystem.
It’s a refreshingly optimistic take in an industry that often treats competition as a zero-sum game. Maybe that indie darling or mid-tier release doesn’t need to run for the hills (Valve most definitely doesn’t) just because Jason and Lucia are coming to town.
The economic ripple effect of Vice City’s return
Beyond just competing for attention, Rice suggests that GTA 6 might actually boost the entire industry by convincing fence-sitters to finally upgrade their hardware. With the game confirmed for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S (PC players will likely wait until 2026), it could drive a significant hardware adoption wave.
It’s definitely gonna be a big economic boost for the games industry, and will be a multiple billion dollar title, but I don’t think that it’s at competition with [indie games].
This theory isn’t just wishful thinking. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has expressed similar sentiments, suggesting that once players invest in new consoles for GTA 6, they’ll likely explore other titles in the ecosystem.
The numbers certainly support the idea that GTA 6 will be massive. Industry analysts project the game could generate $3.2 billion in its first year alone while selling upwards of 70 million copies. And with Malaysian retailers already accepting pre-order deposits despite no official announcement from Rockstar, the hype train has clearly left the station:
A store in Malaysia has already started allowing players to reserve GTA 6 to guarantee a physical copy at launch. pic.twitter.com/st0SwU77h3
— GTA 6 Countdown ⏳ (@GTAVI_Countdown) February 21, 2025
What remains to be seen is whether that April 1st rumored second trailer date holds any water, or if Rockstar will keep us waiting even longer. Either way, it seems the industry might be better served by riding the GTA 6 wave rather than running from it.
Do you think smaller games should avoid the GTA 6 release window, or could they actually benefit from the increased attention on gaming? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
