GTA Costing As Much As Could Help Video Game Industry Rebound In Analyst Says

Veteran investment analyst and researcher Matthew Ball of Epyllion has released a gargantuan, 219-page report about the "State of Video Gaming in 2025," and some of the presentation looks at how the video game industry can possibly grow in 2025. In a section titled "How Player, Playertime, and Player Spend Might Return to Growth," Ball mentioned a variety of opportunities, including Grand Theft Auto VI costing as much as $100 when it launches this year.

Ball said "there is hope" that Take-Two will price GTA 6 at "$80 or even $100," which could prove to be a turning point for the video game industry. This could break a "key price barrier" and allow other developers to raise prices as well, he said. Before this, a Baldur's Gate 3 developer said GTA 6 could prompt a shift to more expensive games if Take-Two decides to price it above $70.

$70 is the current market rate for new AAA releases, and in fact, it was Take-Two that was among the first to raise prices from $60 to $70 back in 2020. Many are naturally wondering if Take-Two might raise prices again for GTA 6's launch, but it remains to be seen if that will happen. Beyond updating the sticker price for games, video game publishers have found other ways to get more money out of players, including expensive special editions, microtransactions, and battle passes, just to name a few.