There’s been some confusion leading up to the 2026 Game Awards about whether Grand Theft Auto 6, the most anticipated game release ever, would qualify for competition at host and creator Geoff Keighley’s showcase. That’s because it comes out on November 19 and nominations for the awards ceremony are usually due around the same time. If GTA 6 didn’t make the cutoff, it would be banished to next year’s Game Awards, forcing it to contend with 2027 games nearly 12 months after the initial hype. Here’s why that won’t end up being the case.
A section on the Game Awards FAQ page lists the eligibility cutoff for the 2026 show, and it seems almost tailor-made to accommodate GTA 6:
Games must be made commercially available to customers on or before Friday, November 20, 2026, at 9 p.m. PT. In the Players’ Voice category, games must ship on or before November 30, 2026.
Since GTA 6 comes out on November 19, it clears the first hurdle. It’s worth noting that this cut-off date is much later than last year’s. For the 025 Game Awards, nominations had already been released by November 17, so that entire phase of the voting has been pushed way back.
There is still another part of the timing to consider. The critics who vote on the awards ( Kotaku does not participate) also need to be able to play the games they vote on to form an opinion on them.
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