Newzoo projects GTA 6 earn up to $5.2 billion in week one

A new analysis projects that Grand Theft Auto 6 is on track for one of the largest entertainment launches in history, with first-week sales potentially reaching up to $5.2 billion. The report, from market data firm Newzoo, estimates the game generated approximately $260 million in global digital preorders shortly after they became available in late June.

According to the analysis, digital preorder spending in the United States and the five largest European markets-the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain-totaled about $180 million in the final week of June. Newzoo used the player distribution of the previous title, Grand Theft Auto 5, to extrapolate that figure into a global estimate. The firm characterized this initial performance as the strongest preorder launch campaign it has ever tracked.

The report explicitly refutes viral social media claims that the game had already accrued $1 billion in preorders, labeling such figures as absurd and inconsistent with historical preorder trends. Instead, Newzoo's projections are based on applying the observed preorder data to established sales curves for major franchise sequels.

The firm's modeling suggests Grand Theft Auto 6...