GTA 6 Could Kick Open The Door To Even Higher Game Prices
As development budgets continue to swell, won't anyone think of the poor game publishers? Warhorse Studios co-founder Martin Klima sure hopes so. In a recent interview with PC Gamer, the co-founder of the studio behind the Kingdom Come series said publishers are "scared to death" to raise game prices, but hopes Rockstar Games' release of Grand Theft Auto VI will change that.
Incidentally, it has already been happening to some extent. Nintendo helped set things in motion by normalizing the $80 price point for new titles when the Switch 2 launched, and at the time, some wondered if that decision would be a prelude to GTA VI costing $100.
It wasn't, fortunately, though Rockstar Games and publisher Take-Two Interactive have found other ways to put the squeeze on gamers, such as charging $399.99 for a Vice City Collection box filled with all kinds of cool swag, but no actual game (ugh).
One has to wonder, however, if $80 titles will become more commonplace, followed by even higher prices for AAA titles.
"The last thing you can do is to increase the unit price. That would help a lot, but everybody's scared to death about it. Now, hopefully, GTA [6] will blaze the trail, and it will allow us to increase the cost," Klima said.
Klima rightfully points out that Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive are in a unique position to pull off a price bump without tanking demand. GTA VI is one of the most anticipated video games in the history of gaming, and the hype has been off the charts. They're also successful entities.
"They are the only ones who can afford, or who can dare, to increase the price of games, which I think is long overdue and also necessary for this business to survive," Klima added.
