13 Years of Events That Happened Before GTA 6's Long-Awaited Release

The meme “we got X before GTA 6” has become one of the internet’s most enduring jokes, and for good reason. The only thing that will finally silence it is the long-awaited release of Grand Theft Auto 6—a milestone that continues to be pushed back by Rockstar Games. With no official launch date in sight, the meme has evolved into a nostalgic time capsule, capturing 13 years of global events that unfolded while fans waited for the next chapter in the GTA saga.

Here are the wildest, most unexpected moments that happened before GTA 6.

Global Events That Defined the Wait for GTA 6

• COVID-19 Pandemic (2020–2022)
  The single most referenced moment in the “before GTA 6” meme. The world shut down, remote work became the norm, and entire eras of lockdowns began and ended while Rockstar remained silent on GTA 6’s progress.
• Queen Elizabeth II’s Death (September 8, 2022)
  The 70-year reign of Queen Elizabeth II ended before GTA 6 launched, turning the moment into one of the meme’s darkest recurring punchlines.
• Russian Invasion of Ukraine (February 24, 2022)
  The outbreak of war in Europe became another grim milestone compared to Rockstar’s endless development cycle.
• Writers Guild of America Strike (May–September 2023)
  Hollywood’s massive writers’ strike brought productions to a halt across the entertainment industry while fans refreshed social media for any GTA 6 news.
• Artemis II Moon Mission (Scheduled for 2025)
  NASA’s Artemis II, humanity’s return to lunar exploration, is set to launch around the Moon before GTA 6’s anticipated release.

Pop Culture Milestones That Outpaced GTA 6

• Barbenheimer (July 2023)
  The simultaneous release of Barbie and Oppenheimer became a full-blown cultural phenomenon, with entire meme ecosystems rising and fading while GTA 6 remained unreleased.
• Twitter’s Rebrand to X (July 2023)
  The platform’s complete transformation—name, logo, and identity—happened while Rockstar fans continued waiting for a trailer.
• TikTok’s Global Rise (2018–Present)
  What started as a niche app grew into one of the world’s dominant social platforms entirely during the wait for GTA 6. Many younger fans barely remember a time before it.
• OpenAI’s ChatGPT Release (November 2022)
  The explosion of generative AI into mainstream culture led to jokes that artificial intelligence might replace humanity before GTA 6 ever arrived.
• The GameStop Short Squeeze (January 2021)
  Reddit users temporarily shook Wall Street before GTA 6’s release, proving that internet communities could disrupt global finance.

Science and Technology Breakthroughs Before GTA 6

• James Webb Space Telescope Launch (December 25, 2021)
  Humanity developed a telescope capable of observing ancient galaxies before GTA 6, making the meme practically write itself the moment the first deep-space images were shared online.
• Microsoft’s Acquisition of Activision Blizzard (October 2023)
  One of gaming’s biggest corporate buyouts occurred before GTA 6, with fans joking that the entire industry was restructuring while Rockstar stayed silent.
• Titan Submersible Implosion (June 2023)
  The Titan submarine disaster dominated the internet for weeks, adding another surreal chapter to the growing “before GTA 6” timeline.

“The only thing that will end the constant ‘we got X before GTA 6’ is, well, the release of GTA 6.”

With no end in sight to Rockstar’s development cycle, the meme shows no signs of fading. Instead, it serves as a reminder of how much the world has changed—and how much more time may pass—before the next Grand Theft Auto finally arrives.