GTA Leaks

Good Morning. The Game Awards goes live tomorrow at 7:30 PM ET and you can tune in via any major streaming platform.

Want to tell us who deserves to win the Game of the Year? Check out our Hive Mind poll below.

—Derek Neville, Tim Rhyne

MAIN QUEST: Can’t leak if we release.

Rockstar developers expressed disappointment after the Grand Theft Auto 6 (GTA VI) trailer leaked on X, ahead of its official release. The unauthorized post contained a noticeable crypto watermark and spread quickly on social media, accumulating thousands of likes before removal. Rockstar responded by releasing the authentic trailer around 13 hours before its intended official release.

This followed action being taken against different leaks on TikTok and X over the weekend that showcased gameplay footage. Despite the leaks, the official GTA 6 trailer broke records with over 90.4 million views on YouTube in 24 hours and now sits north of 9.5 million likes and 110 million views.

Take-Two and Rockstar announced a 2025 release for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, potentially excluding PC gamers initially.

Step back: While Rockstar’s story has several positive metrics, it highlights the balance between maintaining secrecy and engaging with the gaming community. Leaks risk disrupting meticulously planned marketing campaigns and impacting employee motivation and dedication toward future development.

HUD

• 🎥 Twitch will shut down its service in South Korea in February 2024 due to high network fees which have made operating in the country unsustainable according to a blog post from the streaming platform. Twitch had previously removed VOD services and lowered the max quality to 720p to reduce costs.

• 😬 Since Sony acquired Bungie in 2022, the Destiny 2 developers have operated as an independent subsidiary of Sony. Following layoffs and delays, a report by IGN suggests that Sony could take over running the company if the next Destiny 2 DLC flops.

• 💰 Bethesda announced Bethesda Game Studios Creations, a new platform for creators to share their mods and for Skyrim players to search and download mods. Creators can also apply to the Bethesda Game Studios Verified Creator Program, which will allow them to set prices and earn royalties on their mods.

MAJOR W

• 📈 Spotify streams for Tom Petty’s Love Is a Long Road have increased by 36,979% following the 1989 song being featured in the GTA6 trailer. Petty’s Runnin' Down A Dream was part of the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas playlist.

• 📱 Discord has released a redesign for its mobile app which includes navigation tabs, a DM search function, and dark mode for OLED devices.

F IN THE CHAT

• 🎭 Season 1 of Call of Duty’s Modern Warfare 3 includes a brand new operator named Dokkaebi, who the game describes as “a skilled spy and robotics engineer.” Fans are pointing out that this seems incredibly similar to Rainbow Six Siege’s operator also named Dokkaebi whose bio paints her as a hacker.

• 🔻 Diablo 4’s latest patch introduced one of the hardest dungeon battles in the game. However, it also introduced a new bug, which nerfed players’ builds by breaking their paragon boards. Blizzard rushed to resolve the issue with a hotfix.

CAREER CORNER

• Product Marketing Manager — Activision Blizzard Media (New York City, NY)

• Senior Voice-Over Supervisor — ZeniMax (Multiple, US)

• Studio General Manager — Larian Studios (Quebec, CA)

HIVE MIND

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