Back in November 2025, we got the information drop everyone was waiting for: the release date for GTA 6. Yes, it came packaged as a delay announcement, and there was technically no guarantee it would stick, but it ultimately has, as we finally got the other bit of information everyone has been waiting for today: how much Rockstar's long-awaited game would cost.
$80 for the Standard Edition and $100 for the Ultimate Edition calmed fears that the barrier to entry for GTA 6 would start at $100, but now those same fears turn towards the rest of the video game industry. Mario Kart World was technically the game that broke the $70 seal, but as we've seen since its release, even Nintendo isn't trying to charge that much for all of its first-party titles.
That could be at least partly why veteran analyst, author of SuperJoost Playlist and games professor at NYU's Stern School of Business, Joost van Dreunen, told Reuters that the new standard for triple-A games isn't going to automatically jump to $80.
"GTA 6 doesn't lift all prices but widens the gap between the haves and the have-nots," van Dreunen said. He also added that any players scared off by its $80 price tag amounts to "a rounding error against the anticipation."
Everyone and their mother seems to agree that GTA 6 will be the biggest entertainment release of all time so far. It's predicted to sell upwards of 45 million copies almost immediately, and after more than a decade and an entire console generation of waiting, players will largely not be turned away from a new GTA game because it costs $10 more than the other AAA games they might be buying this year.
But to Van Dreunen's point, not every game is going to be capable of throwing its weight around to charge $80 just to get in the door. Sure, some games might try it, but that'll lead to publishers and developers finding out quickly which games players think are actually worth that extra $10 bucks, and which games fall short of earning that additional change.
It'll be interesting to see what 2027's lineup of AAA games does in the wake of however many copies GTA 6 actually does sell on its launch day. Maybe the standard isn't set by Mario Kart World and GTA 6 right now, but they definitely got the ball rolling.
For more on GTA 6's launch, see how Rockstar is handling the release of the physical version here, and see which console platform is boasting to be the best place to jump back into Vice City.
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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