GamesRadar tried to swipe their own GTA 6 codes and it went about how you'd expect

GamesRadar put out a piece where they basically tried to steal their own GTA 6 physical edition codes, and the takeaway is that you probably don't need to lose sleep over someone getting to yours first. Which is a relief, because the code-on-the-box paranoia has been running wild in here for a minute now.

I'm not going to pretend I know the exact method they used, because the source is thin on detail. What I can say is the framing tells you what you need to know. They went in trying to pull it off and came out saying it's not really a thing to worry about. That's a test result, not a rumor, and that counts for something.

why this matters to anyone buying a boxed copy

Launch week is going to be chaos. People are going to be posting photos of their sealed copies, someone's going to notice a code peeking through a gap, and the whole forum's going to spiral. We've already had a thread on exactly that fear. Having an outlet actually go hands-on and come back saying it's fine should calm some of that down.

And let's be real about who's actually at risk here. If someone wants your copy, they're not going to finesse a code through cardboard. They're going to grab the package off your porch. The box on the shelf thing is a much smaller worry than the delivery guy thing.

the bigger annoyance is still the disc situation

What bugs me more than any code theft scenario is that we're buying a physical edition that's really just a download in a plastic case. Zelnick's been out here comparing discs to vinyl records and the community's been chewing on that for weeks. The GamesRadar piece is a nice bit of reassurance, but it's reassurance about a problem that only exists because the box doesn't hold a disc anymore.

Still, credit where it's due. Somebody went and tested it instead of just speculating in a Reddit comment. I'll take a hands-on answer over another thread of people squinting at a photo of a cardboard flap.

If you're picking up a boxed copy on the 19th, keep an eye on your tracking number and stop stressing about the seal. That's the whole takeaway.

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Source: GamesRadar+ · Curated content.