Five days. That's all it took for Grand Theft Auto 6 to plant its flag at the top of PlayStation Store charts across the US, UK, Japan, and practically every major European market. Pre-orders went live on June 25, and the game has been sitting at number one ever since.
Pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto VI are now open, you can pre-order here.
The $100 edition is what players are actually buying
Here's the thing: it's not just that GTA 6 is topping the charts, it's which version is doing it. The Ultimate Edition, priced at $100, holds the number one spot across every regional store where the game is available. That's a meaningful signal. Players aren't defaulting to the cheapest option; they're going straight for the top tier.
The PS Store rankings are sorted by revenue rather than unit sales, which adds some important context. A $100 edition pulling in more revenue than everything else on the platform tells you something about the sheer volume of pre-orders coming in. For comparison, Fortnite has historically dominated these same charts purely through microtransaction volume. GTA 6 is doing it through pre-orders alone, weeks before launch.
If you're still figuring out which version makes sense for your situation, the GTA 6 editions guide covering Standard vs Ultimate and every pre-order bonus breaks down exactly what you get at each price point.
Why digital is winning this time
The physical version of GTA 6 exists, but only technically. Retail copies ship with a download code in the box, no disc included. Since both versions cost the same and neither has any resale value, millions of players have simply gone straight to the PlayStation Store. Rockstar Games made the disc-free decision deliberately, with industry observers pointing to leak prevention and eliminating the second-hand market as the primary motivations.
There are a handful of regional exceptions. The game appears to be unavailable or restricted in countries including Kuwait and Taiwan, where it doesn't appear in store listings at all. Everywhere else, the pattern is consistent.
On Xbox, there's no equivalent public chart to verify the same dominance, but claims have circulated that GTA 6 is selling roughly 8 times as many copies on PS5 as on Xbox Series X/S. Microsoft has pushed back on that figure, saying it doesn't reflect their pre-order data. Whatever the actual split, the PS5 version is clearly moving enormous numbers.
What's happening at Rockstar ahead of November
The pre-order surge is happening against a complicated backdrop inside Rockstar Games. Workers at the studio are currently pushing for official union recognition ahead of the November 19 launch date. The effort follows a round of developer layoffs in 2025 that union advocates described as retaliation for organizing activity. Rockstar maintains the firings were for gross misconduct. The union push is continuing regardless, with organizers describing their position as stronger now than before the sackings.
None of that appears to be slowing consumer demand in any measurable way. The charts don't lie.
GTA 6 launches November 19 on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. If you haven't locked in your copy yet, the GTA 6 pre-order guide covers every platform option and what's currently available before launch day.
