Rockstar Games has reportedly fulfilled a heartfelt request from the family of a terminally ill fan, allowing them to experience Grand Theft Auto 6 ahead of its scheduled November release.
The gesture followed a widely shared LinkedIn post by Anthony Armstrong, a developer at Ubisoft Toronto, who appealed to the games industry on behalf of a close family member battling cancer.
In the post, Armstrong explained that his relative had been given a prognosis of six to twelve months to live and was a lifelong fan of the Grand Theft Auto series. With GTA 6 set to launch in November, there were fears the fan might not live to see the game’s release.
Armstrong’s message quickly gained traction online and, according to reports, eventually reached the attention of Rockstar Games and its parent company, Take-Two Interactive. Insider Gaming reports that Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick became aware of the situation as the post circulated.
In his original appeal, Armstrong noted that his family member lives close to Rockstar’s Oakville studio and expressed hope that an early playtest might be arranged so they could experience the game before their condition worsened. He later updated the post to confirm that the message had reached senior leadership and, shortly afterwards, shared that Rockstar had contacted the family with what he described as “great news,” though no further details were disclosed.
“That’s all I can really say,” Armstrong wrote in his final update. “But thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Grand Theft Auto 6 is currently scheduled to launch on November 19 after multiple delays, with Take-Two stating it is confident the extra time will result in a more polished release. While Rockstar has not publicly commented on the individual case, the reported gesture has been widely praised by fans as an example of compassion within the games industry.
Earlier on the same day, the story gained attention, and emergency services were briefly called to Rockstar North following a boiler room incident. The company later confirmed the situation had been resolved and that the office had reopened, with no impact on development.
