Analyst: GTA 6 launch fears are overblown for most developers
Circana's Mat Piscatella told GamesBeat that not all PS5 and Xbox Series owners will want Grand Theft Auto 6, and PC and Switch players will need other games.
Mat Piscatella, the games lead at research firm Circana, told GamesBeat that developers' fears of launching their games in the same window as Grand Theft Auto 6 are overblown. The veteran analyst argued that the audience for Rockstar's game is narrower than the industry assumes.
Piscatella noted that not all of the roughly 49 million PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series owners in the US will be interested in Grand Theft Auto 6. He also pointed out that Switch owners and PC players will want other games, because they cannot play Grand Theft Auto 6 on those platforms.
According to Piscatella, developers of cozy games, life sims or first-person shooters aimed at a different target audience need not worry about competing with Grand Theft Auto 6. He added that the game now has a wide-open window, since other releases moved away from November.
Grand Theft Auto 6 is expected to launch in November and has been described as one of the biggest video game releases ever. Piscatella said a game of this scale has not been seen in literally 13 years.
Quick answers
When is Grand Theft Auto 6 expected to launch?
Grand Theft Auto 6 is expected to launch in November, according to the report.
Why does Mat Piscatella say developers shouldn't fear GTA 6?
He said not all PS5 and Xbox Series owners in the US will want the game, and that Switch and PC players cannot play it and will want other titles.