Rockstar has responded publicly to the wave of Grand Theft Auto VI gameplay leaks for the first time, in a statement posted to its X account at 7:26 am ET on Wednesday, August 26. The statement confirmed the Extended Look for Thursday, August 27, and held the launch date at November 19.
“It would be an understatement to say that having videos of Grand Theft Auto VI gameplay leak in this way has been heartbreaking for our team,” the statement reads, adding that “this is obviously not how we intended for you to see the game after all this time.”
The statement is Rockstar’s first on-record confirmation that the leaked videos are real gameplay. Clips have been appearing daily since August 18 from an account calling itself Cyberleek, a run GameSpot’s timeline documents through gameplay videos and map imagery, alongside a manifesto against digital-only pre-orders. Kotaku reports the footage is believed to come from a build no later than 2025. Take-Two has responded with DMCA takedowns and subpoenas to Microsoft and Discord seeking the leaker’s identity, moves we covered in our report on the leaks’ first week, and the leaks have already cost Take-Two $2.83 billion in market value in two days. Claims about who is behind the account and what they hold remain unconfirmed; Rockstar’s statement does not address the source of the material.
The statement has not stopped the releases. Within hours of it going up on Wednesday, a further gameplay clip titled “Rideout Customs” was posted from the same account, as reported by VideoCardz, which describes it as showing Jason driving a modified car pursued by police, followed by a brief cutscene featuring Lucia. We have not verified the clip ourselves.
The company also apologised for the long quiet spell since the last official material, saying it is “very sorry that everything has taken as long as it has”, and offered a rare status note on development itself: “from getting the game finished (nearly there!) to sharing more details and official gameplay”.
The Extended Look, announced on August 6, premiered on Netflix on Thursday, August 27 at 3pm ET, which is 10pm EAT. It stays exclusive to Netflix for six hours before arriving on YouTube and the GTA VI site at 9pm ET, 4am EAT on Friday. Rockstar’s own name for it is “An Extended Look”; Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has called it an “extended trailer” in an interview with IGN, though Rockstar itself has not used the word trailer.
On the leaks’ effect on players, the statement concedes “the intended game experience may now be impacted by some spoilers”, and asks players to “wait a bit longer to experience the game for themselves on November 19”. The date, first set for May 26, 2026 and moved to November 19, 2026 last November, stands.
The statement closes by thanking the community: “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.”
Everything Rockstar has confirmed and everything still rumoured about GTA VI is tracked on our GTA VI hub and the Rumour Ledger.