A terminally ill fan of the Grand Theft Auto series has been granted early access to the upcoming GTA 6, following a plea from a family member who works in the gaming industry. Ubisoft developer Anthony Armstrong made the appeal to Rockstar Games on LinkedIn in December, asking for his relative to play the game before his death.
Mr Armstrong wrote that his family member, a huge GTA fan, had been given six to 12 months to live, and may not survive until the official release date of 19 November 2026. In a since-deleted post, he said: “Best case scenario he will be leaving us the same month it does... It’s my hope that one of you may be able to set up an exclusive playtest.”
Several weeks later, Mr Armstrong updated the post with good news, stating: “We spoke to them today and got great news. That’s all I can really say, but thank you all from the bottom of my heart.” Rockstar Games has not publicly commented on the matter.
This is not the first time Rockstar has granted early access to a terminally ill fan. In 2018, a man with neurofibromatosis type 2 was allowed to play Red Dead Redemption 2 weeks before its launch after his father contacted the developer. Two Rockstar employees brought a private demo to his home.
