The download code printed inside the cover of the boxed PlayStation 5 edition of Grand Theft Auto 6 can be read in reverse through the closed case with a flashlight on some PEGI-rated copies, according to GameSpot, which cited owners in PEGI regions posting on the forum ResetEra. GameSpot published the reports on 13 November. The game does not unlock until 19 November, and no thefts have been confirmed.

The retail release is a code-in-box: the case holds a code and no Blu-ray disc. Rockstar’s packaging differs from most publishers’ in one respect. Rather than printing the code on a slip of paper or a separate insert, it is printed on the inside of the back cover art.

Sony’s support site sets out what a buyer can do with that code. “If you’ve pre-ordered the GTAVI Physical (Code-In-Box) version, you can use your code as soon as you receive your copy. You can then pre-load the game onto your PS5 console, so you’re ready to play when GTAVI launches,” the Grand Theft Auto VI code support page says. “You will not be able to play GTAVI until November 19, 2026.” Code-in-box copies and digital preorders unlock on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on that date.

Where the code sits in the box

Gabe Gurwin wrote for GameSpot that the code is visible in reverse when a flashlight is focused on the cover from outside the closed case, and that the packaging varies by region. “At this time, the trick does not seem to work on North American copies of GTA 6, as the code is intentionally obscured,” the article says. GameSpot said it had asked Rockstar for an explanation. No response has been reported, and Rockstar has not commented.

Sammy Barker, writing for Push Square, described the same regional split. The US release has a camouflaged pattern around the code, as shown by the ResetEra user Mattmo831, so light can be shone into the box without the code becoming readable from the other side. Some PEGI units do not have that pattern, which is why the code is described as potentially visible on those copies.

Barker also wrote that the point is not settled. There is debate over whether the poster insert included in the box blocks the light: some people say they have replicated the issue, while others say it cannot be done with a sealed copy. On whether a lifted code would work, he wrote that codes “aren’t activated at the point of purchase like other digital vouchers”. Sony’s own guidance tells buyers they can redeem as soon as they have the copy and pre-load the game, but cannot play before 19 November.

GamesRadar tried the trick on its own copies

Dustin Bailey, writing for GamesRadar on 13 November, tried the trick on his own US PS5 physical edition and it did not work. There is “a strip of camouflage patterning underneath the code that renders it unreadable from the opposite side no matter how bright a light you shine at it”, he wrote.

A colleague, Catherine, tried it on her UK PS5 copy, with the same result. “The code is unreadable through that camo pattern,” Bailey wrote of that test. He added that not every code-in-box copy carries the camouflage strip.

Bailey said he had gone through unboxing videos of the game and could not find a US copy without the camouflage layer, but that some copies with a PEGI rating have only a plain black strip in the background. Those, he wrote, could be vulnerable to the flashlight method.

On actual losses, he wrote: “I haven’t managed to track down anybody reporting that they’ve fallen victim to a stolen code.” He also set out why the route is awkward in practice. Most retailers keep games behind locked glass cases, so someone attempting it would have to buy the game, hope it is a black-background version, use an unusually powerful flashlight, and then persuade the retailer to take the copy back for a refund.

What buyers can do before 19 November

For anyone who already has a copy, the sequence Sony describes is redeem the code, pre-load the game, then wait for the 19 November launch. The support page tells buyers to enter the code by signing in, selecting their avatar and choosing Redeem Code.

The same page sets out what to do when something goes wrong. If the store returns a “Code has already been used” message, Sony directs users to check their order history to confirm the pre-order went through. For a code that is damaged, missing or in need of a refund, it directs them to the retailer. Its buying guide adds one line on sourcing: “Buy only from reputable retailers to ensure functionality and authenticity.”

Barker wrote that, as far as he could see, “there aren’t an enormous number of people who’ve complained upon buying the physical version that their code has been redeemed”, while adding that publicity around the method could raise the probability. The packaging question arrives in the final week before a launch that has already drawn attention for its pre-order numbers and 30fps console frame rate. Rockstar has not said why the obscuring layer is used on North American copies and absent from some PEGI copies.