Best Buy affiliate email suggests GTA 6 pre-orders could open May 18

Best Buy affiliate emails shared online on Friday, May 15, pointed to a possible May 18 opening for physical pre-orders of “Grand Theft Auto VI,” but Rockstar Games has not announced any pre-order date. Screenshots reposted by creators and deal-tracking accounts described a Best Buy U.S. creator campaign labeled “GTA 6 Pre Order (Physical Game)” with a run date of May 18 through May 21. The posts revived speculation that Rockstar could pair a retail pre-order push with new marketing materials, including a third trailer, though no such plan has been confirmed. As of Saturday, May 16, Rockstar’s official Newswire still listed the game’s release date as November 19, 2026. ### What exactly did the Best Buy email appear to show? A screenshot circulated this week showed a Best Buy affiliate or creator campaign carrying the title “GTA 6 Pre Order (Physical Game)” and dates of May 18 to May 21, 2026. VideoCardz, citing the screenshot, reported the listing also included a 5% online-sale figure and appeared to come through Best Buy’s affiliate program on Impact. (videocardz.com) Cheap Ass Gamer, a long-running deals account, posted on X on May 14 that “GTA 6 Pre-Orders Start via Best Buy on May 18th” and said the information came in an email from the retailer’s affiliate account, according to reports that embedded the post. Complex and Vice both said multiple Best Buy affiliates reportedly received similar promotional emails. (videocardz.com) ### Does the email confirm public pre-orders will open on May 18? Best Buy has not published a public “Grand Theft Auto VI” product page confirming a May 18 start. Best Buy’s own site shows general pages for pre-order video games and future physical releases, but a search result for “grand theft auto 6” did not surface a live public listing for the new game in the material indexed by the web tool. (videocardz.com) Impact’s public materials show that brands use the platform to manage creator and affiliate campaigns, which means the screenshot is consistent with a partner-marketing workflow. That still does not establish that consumers will be able to place orders on the same date, because affiliate campaign windows can precede or bracket a retail launch. ### Where did the Trailer 3 talk come from? (bestbuy.com) Forbes reported that the Best Buy affiliate email had become the most concrete recent clue cited by fans watching for a third trailer and pre-order news before May 21. Other gaming outlets repeated that theory, but the reports attributed it to community speculation rather than to Rockstar, Take-Two Interactive or Best Buy statements. (impact.com) Vice reported the leaked dates had prompted questions about whether a new trailer was imminent, but its story did not cite an official announcement from Rockstar. The same is true of reports about six editions or early-access access tiers: those claims have circulated in rumor coverage, but no official product breakdown from Rockstar or Take-Two was available in the sources reviewed. (forbes.com) ### What has Rockstar actually confirmed? Rockstar Games said on November 6, 2025 that “Grand Theft Auto VI” is set to launch on Thursday, November 19, 2026. The company said the delay from its earlier window would give the studio more time to finish the game with the expected level of polish. (vice.com) Rockstar has not posted a Newswire item in the sourced material confirming pre-orders, pricing, editions or a third trailer date. That leaves the release date as the clearest official milestone now on the record. ### Why are people watching May 21 so closely? Take-Two Interactive said it plans to report fourth-quarter and fiscal-year 2026 results on Thursday, May 21, 2026, after the market close. (rockstargames.com) The company said it will hold a conference call at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time that day. May 21 matters because Take-Two is Rockstar’s parent company and earnings calls often draw questions about major release schedules. (rockstargames.com) As of May 16, though, the company’s investor materials only confirm the date of the call, not any GTA VI pre-order announcement tied to it. Take-Two’s May 21 earnings release and conference call are the next scheduled public events that could produce official comment, while Rockstar’s current release date remains November 19, 2026. (take2games.com 1) (take2games.com 2) (ir.take2games.com)