Some gamemakers want ‘Grand Theft Auto VI’ (‘GTA VI’) to be priced between $80 and $100 to give the game industry “hope”, analyst Matthew Ball has said.
Some gamemakers want Grand Theft Auto VI to be priced between $80 and $100 to give the game industry 'hope', analyst Matthew Ball has suggested
The industry is currently struggling to balance its finances - with several major studios like Bungie and Ubisoft laying off hundreds of developers and cancelling projects to cut costs - though Ball believes Rockstar Games’ upcoming title “could re-establish packed video game prices after decades of deflation despite rampant cost growth”.
Ball - who is the CEO of Epyllion - said: “Some gamemakers hope ‘GTA VI’ will be priced at $80 to $100, breaking the $70 barrier and helping $50 titles to move up to $60, $60 to do $70, $70 to $80 etc.”
For years, standard editions of AAA games have cost between $60 to $70 - meaning titles have been getting cheaper in real terms due to inflation in recent years - and the analyst suggested Rockstar pricing ‘GTA VI’ at the standard $70 would make the game the “cheapest” entry into the franchise.
The analyst said: “Packaged game prices have never been lower in real terms than they are today — even though budgets are at all-time highs and player growth is stalled.”
If inflation was taken into account, Ball said ‘GTA VI’ would cost around $91.
Analysts predict the title - which is slated to release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S later in 2025 - will make up to $3 billion in its first year, with around $1 billion in pre-orders alone.
If this estimated figure becomes a reality, ‘GTA VI’ will become the single biggest launch in entertainment history - dwarfing previous projects from both the games industry and Hollywood blockbusters.