The recent gameplay presentation for Grand Theft Auto 6 generated massive online engagement, attracting a peak audience of nearly 3.97 million viewers across co-streams on major platforms. Data from Streams Charts shows that more than 9,000 content creators broadcasted Rockstar Games' Netflix reveal, resulting in over 5.2 million total hours watched. This milestone establishes the event as the most-watched gaming livestream of 2026, outperforming major industry showcases such as Summer Game Fest, which peaked at 3.81 million viewers, as well as broadcasts from Nintendo and Sony.
Twitch captured the largest share of the audience, accounting for 44 percent of total watch time, followed by YouTube at 34.8 percent and Kick at 20.2 percent. Spanish creator Juan Alberto "IlloJuan" García led individual broadcasts with a career-high peak of 233,520 viewers. Other top streamers included Rubius, who reached 191,056 peak viewers, and IShowSpeed, who drew 177,887 viewers.
The high demand caused widespread technical difficulties when the broadcast launched at 8 p.m. UK time. Both Twitch and Netflix experienced disruptions that left some users unable to access streams for up to 50 minutes. Network monitoring company Cloudflare reported significant traffic spikes, noting a 16 percent global increase for Netflix and a 45 percent jump within the UK. Twitch traffic rose by 35 percent at its peak, while YouTube saw a 39 percent surge during the trailer release. Rockstar's official website experienced the most extreme surge, rising 172 percent globally and 1,210 percent in the UK.
Despite technical hurdles, audience engagement remained intense, with analytics tracking over 100,000 chat messages over a three-hour window. Neutral comments made up the majority of chat activity at 65 to 72 percent, while positive sentiment ranged between 11 and 15 percent. Negative reactions accounted for 17 to 20 percent of chat volume, primarily directed at streaming outages. Roughly one-fifth of messages compared the new footage to Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2, with some users expressing skepticism over the game's evolution.
The presentation provided extensive details ahead of the game's scheduled release on November 19 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. The footage highlighted a redesigned Wanted system, updated carjacking mechanics, a new romance system, and a vast world filled with interactive activities. While commentators noted the game's ambitious push toward realism, the high-profile reveal comes amid legal challenges for developer Rockstar North, where former employees are contesting their dismissals in employment tribunals over alleged union-busting.
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