There’s been a lot of buzz lately about Grand Theft Auto VI possibly launching with a $100 price tag for its standard edition. That’s a big jump from the usual $70 most AAA games go for these days, but some new reports suggest that move could actually hurt Rockstar more than help them.
A new survey from MIDiA Research, shared with IGN, suggests that pricing Grand Theft Auto VI too high could actually hurt overall sales. The study, which asked more than 2,000 U.S. consumers about their buying habits, found that $70 is the sweet spot for maximizing revenue. Pushing the price up to $100, on the other hand, would likely reduce sales enough to cancel out any extra profit per copy.
As Perry Gresham, MIDiA’s Head of Data, succinctly put it to IGN, “A $100 price point would actually leave money on the table.”
The numbers tell an interesting story. About 60% of people surveyed said they were at least somewhat interested in buying the game. Based on MIDiA’s estimates, pricing it at the sweet spot of $69.99 could lead to around 22.9 million copies sold in the U.S., roughly 8.6% of the adult population. That would translate to about $1.6 billion in revenue.
Interestingly, choosing a standard $70 price could benefit Rockstar in another way. It leaves room for premium versions of the game, which could bring in significant extra revenue. Many loyal GTA fans are willing to pay considerably more for exclusive digital bonuses and collector’s items.
For anyone counting down the days, Grand Theft Auto VI is set to launch on May 26, 2026, for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles. A PC release hasn’t been officially announced yet, but comments from Corsair Gaming hint that it could arrive a few months after the console launch.
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