There is a lot of hype built around Grand Theft Auto VI. While it was the most anticipated game for 2025, Rockstar Games has since pushed GTA 6 back into 2026. So, we’re waiting a little longer to get our hands on this next installment finally, but what will it cost us? Video games are rising again, with Nintendo first announcing that their select titles on Nintendo Switch 2 will now fetch a $80 price tag.
Video games are not a cheap hobby. They can be incredibly pricey, and it’s frustrating for consumers to dig even further into their pockets to enjoy some of the more anticipated video game releases. The former SIE Worldwide Studios president, Shuhei Yoshida, recently spoke about this subject to PlayStation Inside.
While discussing Nintendo’s announcement of $80 games, Shuhei Yoshida noted that this was inevitable. Nintendo might have been the first to adopt this price point, but it was inevitable. Yoshida also noted that production costs are constantly rising, with AAA games becoming more technologically demanding.
Everything in video games today is more advanced and more technologically demanding than ever before, and therefore requires more resources. Each publisher or manufacturer sets the price of its games, of course, but in the end the heart of the matter lies in production costs. And that’s why industry actors are so keen to diversify their revenues, in order to continue producing the AAA games that the public buys before anything else. Basically, the proliferation of remasters and remakes doesn’t really stem from any kind of nostalgia or a desire to bring games up to date, but is a kind of “easy” solution to bring in profits that ultimately help finance new games. The same goes for PC ports. I’m not particularly bothered by this, because these ports, remakes and remasters are mostly made by support studios like Nixxes Software, so the studios developing the new games are relieved of the burden. – Shuhei Yoshida
They went on to say there needs to be a balance to see revenue outside of the AAA game releases. A few ways this is done are by remakes, remastered editions, and ports. As Yoshida noted in the publication, it’s an easy solution to bring in profits while easing the burden of developers. This is because support studios can often handle ports, remastered editions, and even remakes.
So I don’t know if Rockstar will jump at the chance to set the price of GTA 6 at 90 euros or more, to speak with your currency, but the situation is this. And we could even add subscription platforms and games as a service, which, while providing huge revenues in their own right, also help to finance AAA down the line.
In any case, a balance must be found between production costs and game prices. GTA6 will obviously be a case in point, but if you take the example of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the game is just as phenomenal visually, despite the fact that the team only has around thirty people. This is one of the ways forward, I think, because you can make excellent games with tighter teams and budgets without compromising quality. – Shuhei Yoshida
Meanwhile, they went on to state that they don’t know if Rockstar Games will jump at an even higher price point for GTA 6. But given their long development cycle and push to raise the bar, it could be quite a behemoth of a price tag for a new video game.
In other news, while Grand Theft Auto VI is being pushed out of 2025, we did get a surprise new trailer drop today. Likewise, Rockstar Games also broke down a few of the characters we’ll be meeting in Vice City this time around. You can check out the new character detail breakdowns right here.
