GTA 6 Global Release Times Revealed, New Zealand Players Set to Get First Access

The Grand Theft Auto 6 (GTA 6), despite suffering multiple leaks in the recent past, has been able to massively impress fans with the Extended Look footage. Now, fans around the world are counting down days, hours, and seconds for its release. The official release date for GTA 6 is officially set for November 19, 2026. While Rockstar hasn’t shared any official global release times for GTA 6, PlayStation storefront listings hint at regional midnight unlocks.

GTA 6 release time most likely to vary by region

The official PlayStation Store listing appears to have spilled the beans on GTA 6’s globe release times. First spotted by folks at GTAVice.net, GTA 6 will reportedly follow a staggered midnight release. So, there’s no simultaneous release time for players across the world. Instead, GTA 6 should become playable at 12:00 AM on November 19 in your local time zone.

The GTA 6 release time in New Zealand is reportedly set at 12:00 AM NZDT on November 19. Australia follows two hours later at midnight AEDT, while Japan and South Korea get access at midnight JST and KST.

Asian players in the UTC+8 regions can start playing at 12:00 AM local time, followed by Indonesia and Thailand at midnight UTC+7. Indian players get access to GTA 6 at 12:00 AM IST, which corresponds to 6:30 PM UTC on November 18. Players in the UAE follow at midnight GST, while Saudi Arabia and Turkey get access at midnight UTC+3.

The European rollout continues through the evening. Eight regions reach midnight at 12:00 AM UTC+2, followed by 19 European regions at midnight CET.

GTA 6 release time in the US and UK

Players in the UK and Ireland can start playing GTA 6 at 12:00 AM GMT on November 19. Brazil and four other regions follow at midnight UTC−3, with Bolivia getting access one hour later. The GTA 6 release then reaches the United States and Canada. Players in the EST/UTC−5 region get GTA 6 at midnight, corresponding to 5:00 AM UTC on November 19.

Mexico and five other regions are among the final listed markets. These players get access at 12:00 AM CST, or 6:00 AM UTC. That means the staggered rollout spans roughly 19 hours from New Zealand to the final listed regions. For players in California, the Pacific Time launch would fall at 12:00 AM PT on November 19, if the regional schedule remains unchanged.

Digital pre-orders can begin preloading on November 12, exactly one week before launch. Rockstar confirmed that timing alongside its pre-order announcement. Physical copies will also support preloading through download codes. However, the game itself remains locked until launch day.