Pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto VI are now live on digital storefronts and at traditional retailers such as Best Buy and Amazon. Rockstar made some waves yesterday when it released details about what these pre-orders would entail. More specifically, some were upset that the physical version of Grand Theft Auto VI will not include a disc. It will be a code in the box that lets you download the game from your digital storefront of choice, whether that’s Xbox or PlayStation.

New information has come to light suggesting that having a digital code in the box of the physical version might be a limited-time offer. According to Rockstar’s website (see image below), these codes will only be available “while supplies last.” Please note that you can click on the image (or tap on it if you are on mobile) if the text is too small to read.

While I want to be 100% crystal clear that there has not been an official announcement from Rockstar confirming it, this suggests to me that there will be a physical edition of GTA VI with discs in the not-too-distant future. It might be as soon as December, according to Polish video game site PPE. Apparently, this website has leaked other physical game announcements in the past, so this could be accurate. Take it with a huge grain of salt until you see an official announcement from Rockstar, though.

Why Would Rockstar Wait To Put A Physical Disc in the Physical Version?

I’m sure a lot of people are wondering why Rockstar would do this. Once again, pure speculation on my part, but I think the answer is obvious. Grand Theft Auto VI is such a big game and is so highly anticipated that it could potentially be the biggest entertainment launch of all time. With that being the case, Rockstar wants to do everything in their power to prevent leaks.

Prior to release, The Last of Us Part II had a massive leak, and as a result, we saw people intentionally spreading false information about it. That damaged the game’s online reputation prior to release, and while those people were wrong, the damage had been done.

Rockstar wants to avoid a similar scenario. When you are creating a physical edition of a game, obviously, work has to be done at a factory to press the discs, make the boxes, and whatever else is required for that specific game. Without a doubt, somewhere along the chain, someone would swipe a copy of Grand Theft Auto VI and leak it online or try to sell it on eBay or whatever. Rockstar wants to avoid this scenario at all costs.

With that being the case, I can see a scenario where, once the game is available and people are playing it, Rockstar can have that factory press discs for a physical version of the game. At that point, the game can’t be spoiled before release because it’s already available.

Keep in mind that the file size of Grand Theft Auto VI is sure to be massive. It most likely will not fit on one disc. That means one of two things will most likely happen:

• Rockstar has the disc act like a software access key. When you put it in your console, you will be prompted to download the game. Companies have been doing this for many years on both Xbox and PlayStation.
• Rockstar releases the full game on disc, but it probably takes 3-4 discs to fit it all.

Both scenarios have their good and bad sides. Which scenario would you prefer? Assuming, for a moment, that Rockstar will indeed go with the physical disc route, would you prefer the first or the second option? Tell us what you think on Bluesky and Twitter.