Launch day vs the same Thursday in 2025
+32%
on last year
32% more leave booked for November 19 than for the same Thursday in 2025. The biggest jump of any working day in 2026 so far, holiday weeks aside.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by Rockstar Games or Take-Two Interactive. Grand Theft Auto and GTA are their trademarks.
Wanted:Time Off
GTA VI drops Thursday, November 19, and people employed through Remote have already booked 32% more leave for launch day than for the same Thursday last year. That’s the biggest jump of any working day in 2026 so far, outside the big holiday weeks. Here’s who’s clocking out, where, and how they planned the getaway.
Until launch, your time zone
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Launch-day leave vs the same Thursday in 2025+32% on last year
Intel from leave booked by full-time employees across Remote's global platform.
#1 game
Of the game launches we checked since 2022, GTA VI leads at 1.32×. Battlefield 6 managed 1.23×, Hollow Knight: Silksong 1.16×.
Italy
1.91× last year. The loudest jump, if not the surest.
Gen Z men
2.20× last year. No group jumped higher.
UK
1.42×, and the jump that holds up best.
Nearly 1 in 3
launch bookings are Thursday plus Friday. Last year, 1 in 6.
1 in 170
launch-day leave notes name the game outright.
How many
The heist window day by day
Every working day from Nov 2 to Dec 4, against the same day last year. Launch day is up 32%. Correlation, not confession: plenty happens on a Thursday in November. Only one of those things is GTA VI.
Launch day+32%vs the same Thursday in 2025
Biggest jump of 2026#1 dayof 139 working days this year so far, outside national-holiday weeks.
Launch week, Tue to Fri4 of 4days beat a typical day. The Friday after is up 17%.
Leave booked vs the same day last year
Launch dayRest of launch weekOther daysTypical day, +5%
Bookings as of Nov 5, each against its 2025 counterpart read the same number of days ahead. Days shaped by local holidays are left out country by country.
How launch day stacks up
One-off days we checked since 2022, vs the same day a year beforeThe biggest jump for any game launch day we checked since 2022: 1.32×, ahead of Battlefield 6 at 1.23×.
Unlocks Nov 26
Sick-day watch
Nobody books a sick day ahead. On Nov 26 we check Nov 19, 20 and 23 against the same days last year, read the same number of days after, and again on Dec 7 once late sick notes are in.
How they booked it
Choose your getaway four ways out
Every leave request of 5 or fewer days that covers launch day, by its shape. Six in ten run through Friday into the weekend.
29.3%
The two-day heist
in and out
M16
T17
W18
T19
F20
S21
S22
M23
Launch Thursday plus Friday, then the weekend. The most popular plan by a distance, and nearly twice as common as last year.
Last year16.5% of launch-day bookings
23.7%
The full week
lie low
M16
T17
W18
T19
F20
S21
S22
M23
The whole launch week off. Now the second choice, down from nearly a third of bookings last year.
Last year31.4% of launch-day bookings
17.7%
Day one only
straight back
M16
T17
W18
T19
F20
S21
S22
M23
Just launch day, back at the desk on Friday. About as common as last year.
Last year19.2% of launch-day bookings
7.2%
The run-up
early start
M16
T17
W18
T19
F20
S21
S22
M23
Wednesday to Friday, so the countdown happens on the sofa.
Last year9.6% of launch-day bookings
From where
Most wanted worldwide
The ten countries whose launch-day leave jumped most against the same Thursday last year. Italy jumped highest. The UK’s jump is the one most likely to hold up.
vs last yearUnder 1.2×1.2×1.3×1.4×1.75×+
Swipe the map sideways to see more.The most wanted list
Top 10 countries, vs the same Thursday last yearWho has been searching for it
Google Trends, “GTA 6”, top 10 countries, top = 100The searchers aren't the bookers
The Dutch search for it hardest. Italians book it off hardest. Half of the two lists overlap, and the UK is the strongest match: second for searches, fifth for leave.
What kind of people
The crew who’s out
Who booked launch day, against the same Thursday last year. Gen Z nearly doubled it, and Gen Z men led the way. The teal line marks no change.
Generation
Same as last yearTop crews by team
Same as last yearTeam is known for a minority of people, so these figures describe that minority.
Cover stories
Caught on record in their own words
Most people kept their reasons to themselves. A few didn’t bother with a cover story. These are their launch-week leave notes, word for word.
9:415G ▮▮▮
Time offRequests
1 in 170
launch-day leave notes name the game outright: GTA, Grand Theft Auto, Vice City, Leonida or Rockstar.
Mission passed
PTO approved
Respect +