Grand Theft Auto VI is on track to be eligible for The Game Awards 2026, according to reports and an analysis of the ceremony's eligibility criteria. The official website for The Game Awards lists November 20, 2026, at 9 PM PT as the cutoff date for game eligibility for the upcoming year's ceremony. As Grand Theft Auto VI is scheduled to launch on November 19, 2026, it falls within this window.
Contrary to speculation, this cutoff date was not established specifically to accommodate Grand Theft Auto VI. Evidence suggests that Rockstar Games likely planned its release date around the established schedule for The Game Awards, which has historically used the Friday before Thanksgiving as its nomination cutoff. For instance, the cutoff date for The Game Awards 2025 was November 21, and for The Game Awards 2024, it was November 22. In 2018, Red Dead Redemption II, a previous Rockstar title, received 10 nominations and four wins at The Game Awards, although it did not secure the Game of the Year award that year, which went to God of War.