I am just a guy with a controller, a backlog longer than a CVS receipt, and a bad habit of buying games I never finish. So when Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick says putting games on Xbox Game Pass or PlayStation Now on day one does not make much financial sense, I listen. Then I look at my wallet, laugh, and boot up another round of GTA Online. It is 2026 now, and the subscription wars have only gotten wilder. PlayStation Now is long gone, folded into PS Plus Premium. Game Pass is still the big dog. And Grand Theft Auto 6 is the elephant in the room that everyone is trying not to stare at. But let us stare anyway. 🎮💸
Zelnick's argument, which he made back during a quarterly earnings call, was simple: Take-Two does not need to hand over its biggest games to subscription services at launch. And he is not wrong. Take-Two owns Rockstar, 2K, and a pile of other studios. Its crown jewels are Grand Theft Auto 5, Red Dead Redemption 2, NBA 2K26, WWE 2K26, and a bunch of mobile games that quietly print money. These things sell at full price, year after year, like hotcakes at a state fair. GTA 5 is older than some of the people playing it, and it still tops charts. Red Dead Redemption 2 is a masterpiece that keeps finding new fans. NBA 2K is basically an annual subscription disguised as a full-price game. So why would Take-Two put those on Game Pass day one and share the pie with Microsoft or Sony?
The short answer: it would not. The longer answer: it might, but only on its own terms. Take-Two has already played footsie with subscriptions. GTA 5 has been on Game Pass temporarily, not once but twice. Red Dead Redemption 2 showed up on PS Now before that service got merged into PS Plus. Those deals were not charity. They were calculated moves to get new players in the door, then sell them Shark Cards, Gold Bars, and whatever else. Zelnick is not anti-subscription. He is anti-giving away the farm for a bucket of peanuts.
Here is the thing, though: from a pure business standpoint, leaving money on the table is not always a bad idea. Microsoft and Sony have deep pockets. They are happy to pay big bucks to get third-party games on their services. A report about Google Stadia revealed that Google spent tens of millions just to port Red Dead Redemption 2 to Stadia. Stadia is now six feet under, but that check cleared. If Microsoft wants GTA 6 on Game Pass day one, it would have to back up the Brinks truck. Sony would have to do the same for PS Plus Premium. Take-Two can take that money, smile, and still sell millions of copies at full price. That is called having your cake and eating it too.
Plus, Game Pass players are not cheapskates. Recent reports have shown that Game Pass subscribers spend around 40 percent more on games than non-subscribers. The service is a discovery engine. It lets people try a game, fall in love, and then buy the DLC, the expansion, or the full game when it leaves. For Take-Two, that is a beautiful thing. It gets paid by Microsoft, gets new players hooked, and then sells them more stuff. It is a win-win-win, as long as the game is not brand new and still selling like crazy. A while back, Take-Two reported a 72 percent increase in net revenue in a year without major releases. That is the kind of cushion that lets you say no to subscription scraps.
Now, let us talk about the elephant in the room: Grand Theft Auto 6. In 2026, this game is the biggest thing since sliced bread, whether it has already launched or is still teasing us with trailers. It cost hundreds of millions of dollars to make. It has been hyped for years. Putting it on a $10-a-month subscription service on day one would be like putting a Ferrari on a rent-to-own plan. It makes no sense. Zelnick has basically already said as much. Do not expect GTA 6 to hit Game Pass or PS Plus Premium on launch day. Do not expect it to hit them a month later. Maybe a year later, maybe two, maybe when GTA 6 Online needs a shot in the arm. But not at launch.
That said, the future is a tricky beast. If GTA 6 leans hard into its online mode, with an evolving map and seasons and battle passes and whatever else, then a subscription service might become a useful marketing tool. Give players a taste of the online chaos for free, then charge them for the full meal. It is the same trick drug dealers use, except with more cars and fewer felonies. But even then, Take-Two does not need to do it. The GTA name alone guarantees sales. Rockstar could announce a game about watching paint dry and it would sell 20 million copies by lunch. 🔥
So what could change Zelnick's mind? A few things:
| Factor | Why it matters | Will it happen? |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription fatigue | If everyone gets tired of paying monthly, the model shrinks. | Maybe, but Game Pass is still growing. |
| Netflix and friends | New players like Netflix are entering gaming, and they have cash. | Yes, and Take-Two will happily take their money for old games. |
| Cloud streaming | If streaming becomes the norm, day-one deals get more tempting. | Possibly, but not for GTA 6 at launch. |
| Game budgets | If games cost $500 million, sharing risk with Microsoft looks better. | Only if sales slow down. GTA does not slow down. |
| Regulatory pressure | If Microsoft buys everything, Sony and others may pay even more. | The jury is still out. |
At the end of the day, Take-Two is in a position of luxury. It does not need Game Pass to survive. It does not need PS Plus to make a profit. It has the biggest franchises in the world, and they sell like gangbusters. Zelnick can play hardball because he holds all the aces. He can take temporary subscription money for old games, keep the new stuff full price, and laugh all the way to the bank. Meanwhile, I will be here, a regular player, trying to decide whether to buy GTA 6 on day one or wait for a sale. Who am I kidding? I will buy it on day one. I am part of the problem, and I am fine with it. 🤷♂️
Maybe one day GTA 6 will hit Game Pass. Maybe one day I will finally clear my backlog. But I am not holding my breath. If Zelnick changes his tune, it will be because the market changed, not because he suddenly got generous. Until then, I will keep my subscription, keep my wallet open, and keep shaking my head at how good Take-Two is at this game. They are not playing checkers. They are playing chess, and we are all just pieces on the board. Pass the controller.