Ex-PlayStation Boss Responds To Rising Game Prices And How It Affects GTA VI

This year has been a bit of a rollercoaster for gamers. On the upside, gaming classics such as Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion have been revitalized and there’s a new console on the way from Nintendo. Gaming is getting more expensive though, with price increases to both software and hardware. Shuhei Yoshida, former President of Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios, shared some insights in an interview with PlayStation Inside.

Games getting a price bump to $80 wasn’t exactly a surprise, with development costs rising for many years. Yet, “people expect games that are ever more ambitious and therefore expensive to develop to cost the same. It’s an impossible equation.” However, as with many others, Yoshida was surprised to see that it was Nintendo that kicked off this new era of game pricing.


As for what Rockstar might choose to do when it comes to setting a price tag for Grand Theft Auto VI when it launches next year, Yoshida wasn’t sure if pricing it at $100 is a foregone conclusion. It’s at least a little bit of hope for gamers on tight budgets, although there will be plenty of industry analysts who may be disappointed.

For those lamenting the current state of the video game business, there does appear to be a more sustainable path forward. Recently released Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has surprised many with impressive visuals and solid gameplay, even though its development studio is only comprised of about 30 people. It shows that “you can make excellent games with tighter teams and budgets without compromising quality.”

Hopefully studios and publishers can find the balance between development costs and the gaming experiences they want to create. Otherwise the hobby risks pricing out many gamers.