Workers are already asking for GTA 6's launch day off: requests run up to 17% above normal
HR software firm BambooHR says requests to take Nov. 19 off are running 9% to 17% above a typical third Thursday of November. What the data shows, what Take-Two's CEO predicted and what it costs.
Plenty of people want Thursday, Nov. 19, off. BambooHR, a company that makes HR software, says requests to take that day off are running 9% to 17% above a typical third Thursday of November, Money reported. That's the day Grand Theft Auto VI comes out on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
It's the first hard number on a launch that has produced plenty of guesses, including a viral claim that GTA 6 will cost the US economy $1 billion. BambooHR's own caveat matters too: a spokesperson told Money that the rise could also reflect people using their time off more freely, not just the game.
What the data shows
- Nov. 19: requests for paid time off run 9% to 17% above a typical third Thursday of November, BambooHR told Money. IBTimes UK, citing BambooHR data from Oct. 22, put the figure at nearly 13% above comparable Thursdays in past years, based on anonymized records for more than 3.4 million US employees.
- Nov. 20: requests for the Friday after launch are up nearly 11% on past years' Fridays, IBTimes reported from the same data.
These are requests booked in advance through one company's software, not a count of who will actually stay home. They don't show who is asking or why.
The CEO saw it coming
Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar's parent company, has joked about it. Speaking at the iicon conference for video game executives in April, CEO Strauss Zelnick said he thinks "a lot of people will be calling in sick on November 19," IGN reported.
In the UK, most people aren't changing plans
A survey of 1,000 people in the UK, run by One Day Agency on YouGov's platform, found that 7% expect to book launch day off and 4% expect to take several days, IBTimes UK reported. Three in four picked none of the changes the survey offered, and in another question 51% said they don't expect to play GTA 6.
What economists say it costs
Not much. Victor Matheson, an economist at the College of the Holy Cross, told Fortune he disputes the $1 billion estimate, and that even if it were right, "it's pretty tiny in the big picture anyway." People mostly move their time off rather than take more of it, he said: "People just rearrange how they're spending their free time."
Our look at the $1 billion claim found that its own numbers come to about $400 million a day, and that no study backs it.
Planning your own day off
- GTA 6 unlocks the night before for much of the US. Store listings unlock it at midnight Eastern on Nov. 19, which is 9 p.m. Pacific on Nov. 18. Rockstar hasn't announced a launch hour. Our release time guide shows when it unlocks where you live.
- Pre-load opens Nov. 12 for digital copies, so the game can be ready when it unlocks. The pre-load guide has the details.
- The launch calendar has every confirmed date around launch.
Questions readers ask
- Are people taking time off for GTA 6?
- Some are planning to. BambooHR says requests to take Nov. 19 off are running 9% to 17% above a typical third Thursday of November, though it says the rise may also reflect people using their time off more freely.
- Did Take-Two say people would call in sick for GTA 6?
- As a joke, yes. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said in April that he thinks a lot of people will be calling in sick on Nov. 19, IGN reported.
- Will GTA 6 cost the US economy $1 billion?
- That figure is one economist's projection with no published study behind it. Economist Victor Matheson told Fortune he disputes it, and that people mostly shift when they take their time off.
- What time does GTA 6 unlock?
- At midnight Eastern on Nov. 19 on US store listings, which is 9 p.m. Pacific on Nov. 18. Rockstar hasn't announced a launch hour.
What did you think?
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