Grand Theft Auto 6 is scheduled to launch on November 19, 2026, and the anticipation surrounding Rockstar’s next mainline entry has reportedly led some American gamers to consider extreme hypothetical sacrifices for early access.
According to a survey conducted by Unwind Media and reported by the New York Post, nearly 10% of respondents who own pets said they would give them up in exchange for playing GTA 6 one week before its release. The survey included more than 1,300 gamers.
Sex was another common hypothetical sacrifice. More than 20% of respondents said they would give it up for a month to receive the game early. The figure rose to 25% among women, compared with 19% among men. Among gamers who had already pre-ordered GTA 6, 32% said they would give up sex for a month, while 13% said they would surrender their pets.
Respondents also identified several habits they would be willing to abandon. Some 53% said they would give up alcohol, 43% would quit smoking, and more than 40% would stop eating fast food or using social media. Coffee and streaming services also appeared among the potential sacrifices, while only 16% said they would give up their smartphones.
The responses are hypothetical and do not indicate that large numbers of people are actually planning to abandon their pets. They do, however, reflect the scale of interest in GTA 6 after 13 years without a new mainline Grand Theft Auto game.
More than half of employed adult gamers surveyed said they planned to take time off for the launch. Among those who had pre-ordered the game, that figure exceeded 62%. A separate estimate cited by Dexerto suggested that 1.5 million Americans could miss work on launch day, potentially resulting in $1 billion in lost productivity.
The report also noted that a California car company plans to pause operations so employees can play, while a US Army unit offered soldiers four days off as an incentive to re-enlist. North American players will nevertheless have to wait longer than some other regions, with New Zealand scheduled to receive access several hours earlier.
Sources: Dexerto.