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It is undoubtedly going to be one of the biggest games of all time, but there is a problem brewing for the GTA 6 release. It isn’t any of the usual controversy that the series usually garners, nor is it related to the price of the game; instead, it is looking more likely that sales of the latest Grand Theft Auto will be hampered by a historic PlayStation and Xbox console shortage.

Speaking to The Game Business, a senior games buyer expressed concerns around console supplies in the 2026 holiday season. “We’ve been informed that because of the ongoing issues around hardware component availability, we won’t be getting the units we want ahead of GTA.” The takeaway is that not everyone who wants to play GTA 6 when it launches on November 19, 2026 will be able to. “Demand will likely outstrip supply during the year end period.”

The component shortage that the unnamed games buyer, who The Game Business says was speaking without permission from his employer, mentioned has been ongoing for years and is at least partially fuelled by increased demand from crypto farms and AI data centers buying large quantities of RAM and GPUs. It is partly why the price of the PS5 and Xbox consoles has risen in the past year.

Hearing industry insiders speak about Christmas console shortages in July might seem alarmist, but this is the time of year when many retailers are ordering their stock for the following holiday season. 

We’ll have to wait a few months to find out if the console shortage becomes reality and, if so, the impact it has on the GTA 6 launch. Fans have been desperate to play Grand Theft Auto VI for years now, but the hype won’t help if there aren’t any consoles to play it on.

Here's how to play all the Grand Theft Auto games in release AND chronological order, from the 1960s London prequels to 2025's GTA VI.