‘GTA 6’ Pre-Orders Near Five Million with Ultimate Edition Dominating Sales

Rockstar Games has been building excitement for its highly anticipated open-world game with just a few cinematic trailers and some screenshots. Despite the lack of actual gameplay footage, fans are eagerly pre-ordering in numbers that are surprising even industry experts.

Pre-orders for ‘Grand Theft Auto VI’ began on June 25, well ahead of its scheduled launch on November 19. Even before any gameplay was shown, the early numbers were impressive. Analytics firm Sensor Tower has closely monitored the pre-order activity, revealing demand that far exceeds typical industry standards for premium editions.

The momentum has only increased since then. Sensor Tower’s latest estimates indicate that ‘GTA 6’ pre-orders have reached nearly 5 million units, especially following the release of ‘Grand Theft Auto VI: An Extended Look’ on August 27. This 26-minute showcase reportedly caused a staggering 570% surge in pre-orders over the two days after its debut. On the reveal day alone, pre-orders jumped approximately 436% compared to the previous day, with PlayStation users accounting for most of that increase.

Equally notable is how buyers are choosing to spend their money. Sensor Tower’s data shows that nearly 90% of pre-order customers have selected the $100 Ultimate Edition over the standard $80 version, a trend that significantly outstrips typical performance for premium editions in the gaming industry.

Karl Kontus, general manager of Video Game Insights at Sensor Tower, highlighted the unusual nature of this trend in comments to GamesIndustry.biz. He stated, “A 50% premium share during preorders is a great number. Typical premium shares for games tend to be around 10 to 20%,” and added, “I have never seen a 90% premium share before.”

The Ultimate Edition offers exclusive content not available in the standard version, including additional vehicles, weapons, and access to special in-game stores. Both editions come with a nostalgic Vintage Vice City pack, making the decision to opt for the Ultimate Edition largely about the extra $20 and what it unlocks.

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has described the pre-order figures as unprecedented, though he has not provided specific unit numbers. Kontus has projected that total pre-orders could reach as high as 25 million by launch, potentially generating around $2 billion in advance revenue if the trend continues. While these figures are estimates rather than confirmed numbers from Rockstar or Take-Two, the consistency across various data points makes them hard to ignore.

With almost three months remaining until the launch and Rockstar’s full marketing campaign yet to kick off, the current pre-order rate suggests that ‘GTA 6’ has plenty of potential to grow even more before November 19.

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