The delay of GTA 6 points to 2028 for the next Xbox and PS6, according to reviewers

An analyst suggests that Xbox and PS6 could be delayed until 2028.

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The delay of GTA 6 is not only rearranging the plans of millions of players, but it’s also starting to raise doubts within the industry itself. Both PlayStation and Xbox have been preparing for the generational shift, and until now, 2027 seemed like the most logical window for the technological leap.

In recent hours, however, some analysts have begun to consider a different possibility: if GTA 6 arrives later than expected, could Sony and Microsoft decide to stretch the current generation by another year to take advantage of the game’s commercial pull on their current consoles?

Could the next Xbox and PS6 be delayed until 2028?

Analyst Piers Harding-Rolls, from Ampere Analysis, points out that both Sony and Microsoft would have preferred GTA 6 to be available before the end of 2026 to coincide with the start of the new generation. With the delay confirmed, it opens the door to a possibility: stretching the current cycles by another year and moving the generational shift to 2028.

• As he explains, GTA 6 not only boosts sales at launch, but also for several years, so accelerating the debut of new consoles could go against usual commercial interests. Additionally, the presence of cross-generational games reduces the urgency to change hardware, which would also work against an early release.

On the other hand, the impact for Xbox could be different. Microsoft has shown that its strategy no longer revolves around selling consoles, and although the future Xbox will be compatible with GTA 6, many players may feel comfortable with Xbox Series for a longer time if Rockstar’s big launch looks good on the current hardware.