GTA VI pre-load opens on PS5 and day-one cloud play comes to Xbox: Sony and Microsoft both cite record pre-orders

The Grand Theft Auto VI pre-load has been available on PlayStation Store since Tuesday 10 November. Sony Interactive Entertainment announced it on the PlayStation Blog, in Italian and English: given what it called "unprecedented demand", the company worked with Rockstar Games to make the game available to download nine days early, ahead of the 19 November launch.

Sony writes that Grand Theft Auto VI "is now the most pre-ordered game in the history of PlayStation Store". It did not disclose pre-order figures. Players who already own the digital edition can start the pre-load; those with the boxed version with a code can do so once they have redeemed the code.

The PS5 launch will be staggered at midnight by country, starting at 00:00 NZDT on 19 November in New Zealand and then, Sony writes, "across the globe as respective countries hit midnight on November 19".

In the same post Sony published a video on the features of the PS5 version. The game uses the DualSense's built-in speaker, haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, adjustable from the accessibility settings, as well as Tempest 3D audio. On PS5 Pro, Sony points to improved sharpness with PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) and ray-traced shadows.

On Xbox, in the cloud too

Grand Theft Auto VI will also be available from launch day via Xbox Cloud Gaming, on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. Xbox Wire announced it on 10 November: streaming will begin at 1:00 a.m. US Eastern time, which is 7:00 a.m. in Italy.

In the cloud, the game will use Xbox Series S graphics settings. On Series X and Series S, Rockstar Games' title instead runs as a native version and can already be pre-installed. Xbox One, which does not get a native version, will therefore be able to access GTA VI only through streaming. The game must still be purchased separately.

The broader news concerns the service. From 11 November, in supported markets, cloud play time for compatible titles can be bought without a Game Pass subscription. Microsoft adds that more Rockstar games, including Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2, will come to Xbox Cloud Gaming in the coming months.

According to Microsoft, GTA VI is the most pre-ordered title of all time on the Microsoft Store. Like Sony, the company has not released figures.