US Army soldiers at a Georgia base are being offered a four-day pass to play the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI when it is released in November but they must agree to serve for at least another two years. At least 20 of the 130 eligible soldiers in the 9th Brigade Engineer Battalion at Fort Stewart, Georgia, have taken up the offer, a public information officer told The Independent on Wednesday.

The unusual incentive was set out in a 28 July memorandum, seen by The Independent, establishing a “special reenlistment incentive program” aimed at retaining troops and boosting morale. “This special pass is specifically designated to coincide with the highly anticipated release of the video game Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6),” the memo says.

“Yes, this memorandum is real,” Lt Col Angel Tomko, a public affairs officer with Fort Stewart’s 3rd Infantry Division, told The Independent. “The idea was to have a unique incentives program that connects to what soldiers are interested in.”

The offer is available to all active-duty enlisted soldiers in the battalion who are eligible to reenlist and sign a new contract between 1 August and 14 November.

Those who qualify must agree to serve for a minimum of two years and up to six years.

The incentive was devised by a new career counsellor, who approached unit leadership with the idea of an updated programme designed to help meet reenlistment targets for the upcoming financial year.

“The command team, in conjunction with the career counselor, wanted to get soldiers excited to reenlist,” Lt Col Tomko said. “The command team thinks eligible soldiers are more aware that they are in their window for reenlistment and engage their leadership and the career counselor earlier to see available opportunities.”

The offer was first reported by Task & Purpose.

The US military has been facing challenges in retaining mid-career personnel across its branches. Soldiers can receive reenlistment bonuses worth tens of thousands of dollars, but commanders also use other incentives to encourage troops to remain in service.

Under President Donald Trump and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Army has introduced several measures aimed at retaining personnel, including linking some retention payments to fitness tests.

But the four-day pass linked to the release of a video game appears to be an unusual approach. The incentive comes as the US military continues to deal with the effects of its months-long war with Iran and wider concerns about morale and personnel retention.

The USS Abraham Lincoln, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier carrying more than 5,000 sailors and Marines, has spent more than 200 days at sea.

Family members of sailors have reported deteriorating conditions aboard the ship, including food shortages, broken toilets and mouldy showers. At least 18 US troops have been killed and hundreds more injured in the wider regional conflict.

Meanwhile, Grand Theft Auto VI, the latest instalment in Rockstar’s blockbuster video game franchise, has faced a series of delays. The game, the 16th in the series overall, is currently expected to be released on 19 November.