“We Got ___ Before GTA 6”: How a Meme Turned a Release Date Into a Calendar

There is a joke that has outlived three release dates. Something unlikely happens in the world, and within minutes someone posts: we got this before GTA 6. Aliens, a new pope, a dragon on the Empire State Building. On November 19, 2026, the joke finally runs out of road.

Here is where it came from and the moments that made it.

Where the meme started

According to Know Your Meme, the first jokes appeared as early as 2021. One of the earliest: in June 2021, National Geographic recognized the Southern Ocean as the world's fifth ocean, and people noted we got a new ocean before GTA 6.

The format really took off in the summer of 2023. On July 26, 2023, former intelligence officer David Grusch testified to the US Congress about UFOs. A day later, a TikTok joking that we would get aliens before GTA 6 went viral. From then on, every surprising headline got the same caption.

The best examples, with real dates

Some of these are perfect. The Empire State Building posted its dragon on May 2, 2025, the same day Rockstar announced the first delay. After the papal election, even brands joined in, like the US convenience store chain Sheetz with "We got a New Pope before GTA 6". John Cena answered his own meme by posting GTA 6 art.

Silksong was the one fans could hardly believe. Hollow Knight's sequel had been the other famous "will it ever come out" game. When it launched on September 4, 2025, the meme had its favorite punchline.

Every delay was fuel

The meme fed on dates that moved:

• December 2023: Trailer 1 promised "2025".
• May 2, 2025: Rockstar moved the game to May 26, 2026.
• November 6, 2025: Rockstar moved it again, to November 19, 2026.

Each announcement brought a new wave. And every wave made the release date feel less like a product launch and more like a line on a calendar.

Why it works

The joke is never really about GTA 6. It is about time. Each "we got X before GTA 6" is a little time stamp. Put them in a row and you get a timeline of the last five years, told through one game that kept not arriving. That is why the meme lasted while most memes die in a week.

What happens on November 19

The meme has a built-in end. Once GTA VI is out, nothing can come before it anymore. The jokes will flip around: life after GTA 6, plans postponed until after GTA 6, everything we did not do because we were playing it.

We wrote about that flip in why GTA VI is a cut in time. Want to see the final trailer? Here is everything in the GTA 6 launch trailer.

Sources

• Know Your Meme: We got X before GTA 6
• GameSpot: We got John Cena's heel turn before GTA 6
• BroBible: "before GTA 6" memes after the delay
• Sheetz on X: We got a New Pope before GTA 6
• GamesRadar: We really got Silksong before GTA 6
• VGC: GTA 6 delayed to 2026
• Rockstar Newswire: GTA VI now launches November 19, 2026