The hype train for Grand Theft Auto VI, perhaps 2026's biggest video game and the first installment in the famous sandbox franchise in 13 years, continues to roll on. The said hype train is moving so fast, in fact, that one U.S. Army unit is actually using it as a tool to try and encourage more service time from its soldiers.
According to Variety, the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Division based at Fort Stewart, Georgia, is offering four days off to play the game to active service members in exchange for longer commitments to their service. The offer is available to any service member who signs a reenlistment contract of a minimum of two years between August 1st and November 14th, 2026. So far, at the time of this writing, 20 of the 130 eligible service members have
taken up the U.S. Army on the offer. Grand Theft Auto VI releases on almost every major video game platform on November 19th, 2026.
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“The idea was to have a unique incentives program that connects to what soldiers are interested in,” Lt. Col. Angel Tomko, spokesperson for the 3rd Infantry Division, said in a statement to Variety.
"... Reenlistment incentives are routine for the U.S. Army to reward our soldiers,” Tomko added. She noted that the Army has hosted reenlistment ceremonies in Anzio, Italy; with the Atlanta Falcons as the team visited the installation; 'in, on or with tanks, helicopters, Paladins or Bradleys'; on the beaches of Tybee Island; in Forsyth Park in Savannah; and at other well-known landmarks around Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield.
When it releases, Grand Theft Auto VI will launch with a price tag of $79.99, becoming one of the rare modern games to break away from the recent industry standard of $69.99. A new gameplay trailer will be released on August 27th, with an exclusive six-hour priority window on Netflix before it's made available everywhere afterward.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: A U.S. Army unit is offering 4 days off for GTA 6 in exchange for (at least) 2 more service years
