Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered will take on Grand Theft Auto 6 when both games launch this November, but the team behind the arena fighter said Rockstar’s latest title was “never part of our thinking” when choosing a release date.
In case you haven’t heard, GTA 6 comes out November 19, a choice that prompted a wave of other publishers to do everything they can to not launch their games anywhere near that date. The belief is the fallout from a game 13 years in the making will consume the weeks before and after its release, but Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered has emerged as one of the very, very few titles willing to brave the storm.
GTA 6 is indeed primed for an explosive launch, but the team at developer Pipeworks and publisher Atari haven’t seemed too worried about how this could affect the remaster for a 2000s classic. In fact, after revealing their November 3 release date, the internet rallied behind the kaiju fighting game, filling feeds with memes as the King of the Monsters (and the upcoming Barbie Rewind) stomped forward.
As part of a sweeping interview about the new remaster, IGN asked longtime Pipeworks developer and senior designer Simon Strange about how the release date for Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered was chosen and how GTA 6 played a factor in that decision. You might be surprised to hear Rockstar’s return to Vice City wasn’t really on their radar.
“I have also loved all those memes. I think that’s great. Honestly, wasn’t even in our heads at all when we were picking the release date,” Strange said when asked about how the date was picked. “That’s not my business. I make the video games. I’m not too worried about when they come out. If Atari had come to us and said, ‘Wow, we can’t because we think it’s going to affect the sales with GTA,’ we would’ve had that discussion. But no one ever said anything.”
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— 🐙Dumbo Octopus🐙 (@DumboOctopus4) June 7, 2026
Strange made a good point: November 3 is Godzilla’s birthday. The original film released on that day in 1954, it’s when IP owner Toho recognizes as ‘Godzilla Day,’ and this year, regardless of whatever is going on with GTA 6, it’s when Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered is coming to PC and consoles.
Strange clarified that making sure Gojira kept his November birthday was simply a matter of respect. After Pipeworks landed its contract with Atari and pinned a timeline for physical disc manufacturing, the date was locked in.
“So, the GTA thing, that’s hilarious,” Strange continued. “It’s a really cute meme. We’ve all really enjoyed that. It was never part of our thinking. I wasn’t looking at that calendar and being worried in any way, or thinking about what other games are coming out because the Godzilla fans are very excited for it. They’d buy it on any day that it came out, and putting it on Godzilla’s birthday, that’s just respectful.”
Atari admitted it was “certainly aware of the proximity” to the release of GTA 6 when running the numbers tied to its release date. Though still in November, the publisher felt the break between releases gave Godzilla – and Barbie – more than enough room to breathe.
“There were a number of factors at play that led to the selection of November 12 as the release date for Barbie Rewind,” an Atari spokesperson told IGN. “In the end, it made the most sense in our calendar, and we felt the cozy/retro vibe of Rewind and the Barbie brand was going to pull in its own, discrete audience.
“It has been exciting to see fans’ reactions to the idea of our two games, Godzilla: DAMM Remastered and Barbie Rewind, releasing in November with GTA. The amount and quality of creative content fans are posting online is astounding and a joy to watch. They have made the proximity of the releases a fun event.”
GTA 6 or not, Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered will launch for PC via Steam, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S November 3. Barbie Rewind will follow November 12, 2026, for PC via Steam, Switch and Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Pipeworks is also scheduled to release a PC demo for its Godzilla game October 15.
We’ll have more to share from our talk with Pipeworks soon, so be sure to keep an eye out for the full interview. In the meantime, don’t forget to check out our preview.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
