Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar Games cares deeply about reviews and the critical reception for its upcoming open-world action-adventure game, GTA VI, according to CEO Strauss Zelnick.
During a recent episode of The Game Business, host Christopher Dring revealed that he directly asked Strauss Zelnick about the importance of reviews and the critical reception for GTA VI. “Of course,” said the Take-Two Interactive CEO in response. Dring then followed up by asking if reviews mattered “in the same way as they always have been,” to which Zelnick replied, “In the same way as it has been in the past.”
Dring referenced stories about Rockstar Games’ former PR executive Hamish Brown allegedly calling journalists to question why a game had received “only” a 9/10 score. According to him, the developer has historically cared deeply about critical reception, with titles such as GTA V and Red Dead Redemption 2 regularly landing in the mid-to-high 90s on aggregate review sites. Zelnick described those scores as “a reflection on Rockstar’s commitment to quality.”
However, Dring and co-host Dan Dawkins also discussed how the media environment surrounding GTA VI is very different from the one that existed when GTA V launched back in 2013. They argued that modern gaming discourse is much more fragmented, with more critics, more perspectives, and louder social media conversations influencing public perception.
Dring suggested Rockstar Games could encounter “dissenting voices” that may not have existed during previous Grand Theft Auto launches. He speculated that some reviewers could criticize the game over labor concerns, while others may object to the franchise’s violence or satire. Dawkins agreed, noting that all narratives are available at once now about everything, adding that social media creates pressure for some voices to position themselves against overwhelmingly popular releases. Despite that, both agreed that even slightly lower review averages would likely have little impact on GTA VI’s commercial performance.
GTA VI is set for release on November 19, 2026, for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
