Published Jun 28, 2026, 8:00 PM EDT
Tom Wilson is a Gaming Features Writer at Screen Rant. Over the past five years, Tom has worked as the Editor-in-Chief at The Game Crater, as a Staff Writer for GamingIntel, a List Writer at TheGamer, and, of course, as a Senior Writer at ScreenRant. Tom has experience writing reviews, guides, news, and features, and has been responsible for teams of writers, training them and editing their work.
Tom graduated with a Masters in Multimedia Journalism, and has since gone on to build up his portfolio of games journalism work.
Sign in to your ScreenRant account
Everyone is aware of **Grand Theft Auto 6’s **physical edition debacle, as it appears to be making endless headlines and putting a damper on the hype that felt untouchable mere days ago. Rockstar, in an effort to prevent spoilers, elected to ship its physical edition with a digital code rather than a disc, all but rendering it a useless box beyond the initial experience of opening it. Sure, if you want a bit of plastic with the GTA 6 logo on it adorning your shelves, then it is the perfect purchase. For everyone else, it is pointless.
The situation has gotten so bad that retailers are boycotting GTA 6, and for good reason. No one wants to buy a physical product that can’t be lent out to friends, sold at a later date, or even serve as a form of game preservation and count as genuine ownership. Naturally, fans have taken to Reddit and other assorted forums to discuss their thoughts on the matter, and, as one would expect, they’re torn over not just the current state of GTA 6’s physical edition, but its future too.
Many have contemplated possible solutions to this prevailing problem, as fans are allegedly boycotting* GTA 6* on the basis that the physical edition is worthless. One proposed fix is to release a proper disc version months or even weeks later, once everyone who pre-ordered the game has received their copies. This would make sense, especially if Rockstar is looking for a boost in sales come December, and has indeed been rumored to be the case.
Polish outlet PPE.pl and insider Graczdari have both confirmed that Rockstar is planning a disc version of* Grand Theft Auto 6* for a later date, which should be positive news for those getting a little tired of all of* *GTA 6’s many controversies. However, fans on Reddit are a little more skeptical, believing that this information, and indeed the idea of a disc copy, should be taken with a grain of salt. Several have questioned both PPE and Graczdari’s legitimacy, believing them to be wrong, while others have come to their defense.
While user ludek_cortex claims that PPE will “do everything for their clicks,” user Silver_Education_330 rightfully points out that PPE were the “ones who first claimed no physical edition on launch.” NatetheHate, a fairly reliable insider, even chimed in, pointing out that Graczdari “works in game distribution, so they should have access to such information,” while adding that he can’t confirm the existence of a disc-based physical edition, but was looking into it.
However, others have found the idea of releasing a disc version so soon after the initial code in a box version ludicrous, with user Phatboyart questioning, “If physicals are coming 1 month after release, then why bother selling empty cases in Nov?” It is a fair question, although the answer could really be as simple as Rockstar wanting to avoid leaks initially with discs getting accidentally released before launch, and then wanting to increase sales further with a new disc version a few months after the initial hype has died down.
Regardless, it is clear that fans have very strong opinions about *Grand Theft Auto 6 *and Rockstar’s ultimately detrimental decision to switch out a disc for a digital code. One can only hope that this immediate backlash will inform other developers and publishers not to make the same mistake, although it remains to be seen whether any of this negativity has any tangible effect on GTA 6’s overall sales.
](/tag/action-movies/)
](/tag/adventure/)
Rating Pending - Likely Mature 17+
Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE)
Online Multiplayer