Grand Theft Auto VI is downloading onto consoles. Pre-loading opened at midnight local time on November 10 in New Zealand, which reached that date at 11 a.m. UTC on November 9, and it has been rolling west across time zones since. On PlayStation 5 the download screen shows 209.8 GB. Xbox Series X|S pre-loading opens for everyone at midnight GMT on November 10, which is 7 p.m. Eastern on November 9.

The dates and the "up to 212 GB" figure are Rockstar's, from its November 3 Newswire post. Everything else in this article, from the exact download size to what is inside the files, comes from players and dataminers reading the PlayStation Store and the pre-load data, as reported on November 9 by VGC, Wccftech, Insider Gaming, GamesRadar+, GameSpot, IGN and Polygon. Rockstar has not commented on any of it. We have read VGC, Wccftech, Insider Gaming and GTA BOOM directly; the rest we have seen as headlines.

The size, as seen on consoles

  • PS5: 209.8 GB, according to a New Zealand download screen published by GTA BOOM. RockstarINTEL reports the same figure as roughly 209.75 GB to download and 212 GB installed, which matches Rockstar's "up to 212 GB".
  • Xbox Series X|S: the Microsoft Store listing has shown a maximum install size of about 225 GB since November 7. That is a store figure, not a Rockstar one, and Rockstar has not explained why it is higher than the PS5 number.
  • PS5 firmware: the pre-load reportedly requires system software 14.22, the update Sony released on October 28. We covered that report on November 2; it still has not been confirmed by Sony or Rockstar.

If you have cleared 212 GB on PS5 you should be fine. On Xbox, clear 225 GB plus headroom. Any day-one patch would be on top of these figures, and no patch size has been reported.

What dataminers say is in the files

A GTAForums user posting as Tex2, and as TexFunz2 on X, has listed the structure of the PS5 pre-load, and the PlayStationSize account has read strings from the store backend. These are the claims that have been widely reported, in the order of how much weight they can bear.

The game is split into 32 chunks, covering story, mini-game and core sections plus animations, textures and audio, according to the Tex2 listing reported by VGC. This is the most mundane claim and the easiest to believe; it is how large PS5 games are packaged.

Regional content differs. VGC reports that two chunks named core_restofworld hold content "censored from some regional versions", in the dataminer's words, and that the smaller of the two is missing from the Australia and New Zealand version. VGC notes the missing chunk is about 704 KB, which it says "would appear" to be something minor such as a texture or image. Which content, and which other regions, is not known.

A 120Hz mode, no VRR, and a newer PSSR 2. Wccftech reports the data includes a "120hz / High Framerate mode, but no VRR" flag, and lists PSSR 2 upscaling at version 13.60 where every shipped game uses 13.00. Wccftech's own inference is that a 40fps mode on PS5 Pro is therefore possible. That is inference, not a listed mode, and nothing in the data names a frame-rate target. The data also shows no QSSR support on the base PS5, per the same report.

Multiplayer strings. Insider Gaming reports that PlayStationSize found three intent types in the backend: joinSession, launchActivity and launchMultiplayerActivity. Insider Gaming also relays Tex2's suggestion that the game uses a shared base installation with story content split off, which could let an online mode install separately. Rockstar has not announced GTA VI's online component at all, and Insider Gaming says plainly that multiplayer "isn't expected to be playable at launch".

Menu music. The main menu theme has been extracted and posted online. We are not linking to it, and we would say the same about any further extracted assets between now and November 19.

How much of this to trust

Datamining a pre-load is reliable about structure and unreliable about meaning. Chunk counts, version numbers and feature flags are read straight from the files, and the people doing it have been accurate about PlayStation packaging before. What those flags mean for the game you will play is a different question. A 120Hz flag is not a 40fps mode. A joinSession string is not an online launch date. A missing 704 KB chunk is not a censorship story until someone shows what was in it.

Our rule is unchanged: only Rockstar and Take-Two count as confirmed, and Rockstar has confirmed the dates, the platforms and "up to 212 GB". Everything in the section above is reported.

What happens next

Xbox pre-loading opens at midnight GMT on November 10. Code-in-box copies reach retailers on November 12. Take-Two reports its quarterly results after the US market closes today, November 9, with a call at 4:30 p.m. Eastern, and the game launches on November 19. If Rockstar publishes PS5 Pro modes, a day-one patch size or anything about online play before then, we will update this story and the Rumor Tracker.