The recent changes toBorderlands 4’s launch date could be good news forGrand Theft Auto 6. AlthoughGTA 6’s alleged fall 2025 release date is only months away, we stillhaven’t heard anything more from Rockstaron its official launch. Rumors of release date teases, and even potential delays, have become near-constant as fan excitement for the year’s biggest release builds to a fever pitch.
But another game under the Take-Two Interactive umbrella,Borderlands 4, also recently made changes to its intended release date. It could be entirely unrelated - lots of games, especially big triple-A releases likeBorderlands, get their launch dates shuffled around all the time. But this could also be meaningful forGTA 6’s release date.
Borderlands 4 Might Be Dodging GTA 6
Take-Two Could Be Avoiding Competition
Gearbox Software CEORandy Pitchfordrecently announced via X (formerly Twitter) thatBorderlands 4would be releasing earlier than expected, now coming out on September 12 instead of September 23. The announcement coincides withBorderlands' scheduled appearance at the PlayStation State of Play on April 30, where we’ll likely learn more about the upcoming sequel.
Now, again, games change their release dates all the time for all sorts of reasons: production delays, beta testing feedback, licensing issues, staffing changes, et cetera, et cetera. However, most of these reasons would only cause a game’s release date to be pushedback;it’s exceedingly rare for a game to be released earlierthan it was originally intended, even if development is done early.
There are only a couple of reasons that a game’s release date might be moved up. New console releases will sometimes see games out earlier than intended so that they can serve as launch titles, but since we already knowBorderlands 4will be on the Switch 2, which comes out several months before the game, that’s not the likely culprit here. Far more plausible is thatBorderlands 4is trying to avoid competition from a similarly massive release, namelyGTA 6.
Gearbox and Rockstar are both owned by Take-Two Interactive, so it’s entirely possible that Pitchford (or whoever was directly responsible for this decision) is aware ofGTA 6’s impending release date. Even if they’re not, it is known thatGTA 6is expected to be released this fall, and will likely draw lots of attention from other releases around the same time. It wouldn’t be out of the question for them to have movedBorderlands 4up so as toprevent undue competition between the two games.
GTA 6’s Fall Release Window Still Has No Details
What We Do & Don’t Know
We still have no idea exactly whenGTA 6will be released, although we know thatRockstar is targeting the fall. The release window was first announced during Take-Two’s annual earnings call, the first majorGTA 6announcement since the initial trailer reveal, and still the most recent news we have regardingGTA 6’s release.This silence is a deliberate strategyto create anticipation, as stated by Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick.
However,rumors of a delayhave been circulating. While they’re based more on general industry knowledge than any kind of insider information,it’s certainly possible thatGTA 6has been or is about to be delayedinternally, and Rockstar is simply waiting for the right time to announce it - but that’s neither been confirmed nor denied.
When GTA 6 Might Be Releasing
A Theory Based On Borderlands
I’ve long since been a proponent ofan early-mid-fall release forGTA 6. From how Take-Two’s scheduled releases were listed during its earnings call, it only seemed to make sense. Plus, mid-fall means there’ll be sufficient supply, but no less excitement around the game as the holiday shopping season begins.
Borderlands 4’s recent push only seems to confirm that. My guess is that Gearbox wants at least a month’s distance fromGTA 6, which its initial September 23 release date wouldn’t provide. Soa mid-late October release would make a lot of sense; it’d put it firmly within the stated release window, give it enough time to avoid conflict withBorderlands, and keep it fresh in people’s minds as they begin their holiday shopping.
But ultimately, this all relates back to privileged information that only insiders at Rockstar know. The rest of us can only speculate as toGrand Theft Auto 6’s release date, and whether it actually relates toBorderlands 4’s new release date - barring any official announcement, only time will tell whether this theory has merit.
