We’ve been saying it for a while: GTA 6 is eagerly awaited. By gamers, of course, but also by those who do business around video games. First and foremost, of course, its publisher. Given the anticipation and hype, there’s no doubt that the title will sell like hotcakes at launch. And to ensure high sales and profitability, what better way than to take advantage of this expectation to position the title at a very high launch price… Perhaps even €100. If this were to happen, Rockstar Games ‘ title would be the first standard edition game sold at such a price. This, of course, excludes special or collector’s editions.
GTA 6: a historic launch for the video game world?
That’s the bet made by Michael Pachter of Wedbush Securities, who is known for his sometimes inspired forecasts…but not all the time. So it’s important to bear in mind that he has no official confirmation of the game’s price, but he thinks this scenario is entirely possible. Quite simply, development costs for this title have skyrocketed. Several analysts estimate that these costs could reach $1.5 billion. But in reality, given the expectations, the sales price has become almost secondary, as fans of the franchise are fired up and will go for it whatever the conditions.
Several serious estimates put the revenue for Rockstar at close to $10 billion over the life of the game, and $500 million a year from GTA Online alone. These figures would more than cover the game’s estimated development costs, of course, and would take the video game industry into another dimension, far ahead of the cinema, which has already been out of date for some time. Nor should we ignore the collateral effects of this launch. A number of hardware brands are attempting to set their own schedules around the release of GTA 6.