Rockstar Games has finally addressed, in a new statement, the wave of Grand Theft Auto VI leaks that have taken over the internet for the past week, calling the experience heartbreaking for the team and apologizing for how long the game has taken to finish.
The leaks trace back to a source going by the name CyberLeek, who began posting footage on August 18. Since then, around 14 clips have surfaced showing off combat, driving, minigames, radio stations, and large chunks of the Vice City map, including a beach scene in the state of Leonida with surprisingly dense crowds. The leaker even taunted Rockstar directly, posting a screen showing a character evading police and carving their name into a wall with an assault rifle inside the game itself.
Some of the material got a lot messier than gunfights and car chases. Reports describe leaked scenes from parties and strip clubs, and Take-Two has reportedly gone as far as issuing subpoenas to Microsoft and Discord to try to track down whoever is behind the leaks.
Rockstar stayed quiet through all of it until releasing a statement on X on August 26, just one day before the game's official gameplay reveal. The studio said seeing the leaked footage spread this way was genuinely painful for the team and not how they ever wanted players to experience the game after such a long wait.
"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, and this is obviously not how we intended for you to see the game after all this time."
The statement also owned up to the game's long development time, admitting things have taken longer than the studio wanted, though it noted the game is close to done. Rockstar acknowledged that some of the surprise may now be spoiled for fans who have already seen the leaked clips, but asked players to hang in there a little longer to experience the real thing when it launches.
"While it is unfortunate that the intended game experience may now be impact by some spoilers, we hope that everyone will wait a bit longer to experience the game for themselves on November 19."
Despite the chaos, Rockstar's statement makes clear that nothing about the release plan is changing. The Grand Theft Auto VI Extended Look is on schedule to air on Netflix on Thursday, August 27, giving fans their first proper, non-leaked look at gameplay. The video has also been set to go up on Rockstar's own website and channels right after the Netflix premiere.
Rockstar closed the statement by thanking fans for the support messages the team received throughout the ordeal, saying the game is being made for the community and that without players, the studio wouldn't have the privilege of making games at all.
GTA 6 is still on track to launch on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on November 19, 2026.
