The release date for Grand Theft Auto VI has slipped again — it’s now not expected until late 2026 — and the fallout is ricocheting far beyond gamers. When the world’s biggest entertainment franchise hits pause, stock markets wobble, hardware makers rewrite sales forecasts, and governments even start talking. Poland’s parliament debated the delay; analysts are re-running their 2026 projections; and a row over Rockstar’s workplace practices has burst into the open. 

In today’s podcast, Shane Beatty looks at why GTA matters so much, what’s really causing the repeated hold-ups, and how a single title has become an economic bellwether for the global games industry. We hear from our own Micheál O’Connell (whose holiday plans have been derailed by the latest postponement) and from tech podcaster Kelly Earley on what this means for gamers, studios and the rapidly growing Irish games sector. 

🎧 Listen to Kelly Earley on the For Tech’s Sake podcast: https://www.fortechssakepod.com/