- GTA 6 may miss a Game of the Year nomination at this year’s The Game Awards due to its November 19, 2026 release date.
- According to Australian actress Alanah Pearce, TGA’s eligibility cutoff historically falls around the same time as GTA 6’s release.
- Last year’s GOTY nominees were announced on November 17, well before GTA 6’s release this year, which could push its nomination to TGA 2027.
Most players think GTA 6 already has the Game of the Year award secured at this year’s The Game Awards, but its November 19, 2026, release date could prevent it from even receiving a nomination. According to Australian actress and former video game journalist Alanah Pearce, The Game Awards’ eligibility cutoff has historically fallen around the same time as GTA 6’s release.
Alanah Pearce highlighted this in a YouTube video, pointing to The Game Awards 2025 nominee voting timeline: the first jury round took place on November 4, with nominees announced on November 17. If this year follows a similar timeline, GTA 6 would miss the cutoff and won’t receive a nomination until next year.
The Game Awards could adjust its voting schedule to include GTA 6, but there’s no confirmation yet. If GTA 6 misses this year’s cutoff and gets nominated for GOTY next year instead, history could repeat itself, with Rockstar’s game potentially competing with another Santa Monica Studio title, God of War Laufey, much like what happened in 2018.
There’s also the question of whether jury members can finish the game before voting. Rockstar North co-head Ron Nelson previously confirmed that a GTA 6 playthrough could exceed 80 hours, leaving the jury little time to play. Even a November 25 vote would be tight, since it would be a week after the game’s release.
Realistically, The Game Awards could push voting into the first week of December, giving the jury more time to play GTA 6 before the ceremony on December 10, 2026. Geoff Keighley, the event’s creator and host, knows how much attention GTA 6 could bring to the show, especially if it earns multiple nominations.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other deserving games this year. Titles like 007 First Light and Control Resonant could also contend for GOTY, and GTA 6’s massive scale alone wouldn’t guarantee it the award. That said, do you think GTA 6 will miss the TGA cutoffs this year? Let us know in the comments section below.
