As the world anticipates the arrival ofGTA 6, certain industry pundits are also contemplating the opportunity it might provide to raise the standard price of triple-A video games.Reportedly, developers and publishers are hoping the newGrand Theft Automight cost as much as $100, setting a precedent for other games to follow.
Why Games Should Cost $100
I understand the desire. Games cost more to make than ever before, with expectations about map size, content density, and graphical fidelity rising with each new generation of consoles. Given the sheer number of hours players will get from upcoming open-world games likeAssassin’s Creed ShadowsandKingdom Come: Deliverance 2, it’s understandable to consider ways to make more money from that single purchase.
Think about it: if movie tickets cost $10 (give or take depending on where you live and/or the format you’re watching in), and give you two hours of enjoyment, then a game that provides hundreds of hours of fun should be able to retail for significantly more, right? But if we do that hours-for-dollars math, a $70 game would only need 14 hours of content to be considered worthwhile. That’s not the case for most big triple-A games, which routinely offer dozens (if not hundreds) of hours of stuff to do. How do we think through how to price these things? Is $70 really enough given the years of development time and huge amounts of money that are poured into your average triple-A game?
And that’s not even getting into the fairness (or lack thereof) of the $5-$20 range that indies are often expected to occupy.
Why Games Can’t Cost $100
Whether or not $70 is enough for developers and publishers to make a profit, it’s already too much for many players. Walgreens' CEO Tim Wentworthrecently admittedthat the company’s anti-shoplifting strategy of locking items behind glass backfired because the chain ended up selling less product. If you put an obstacle (even a small one) in front of a purchase, it will filter out many casual buyers. Video games being priced at $70 has had a similar effect on the way even I decided which games to buy, and I write about them for a living. Companies might be getting more from each sale, but there’s a chance those sales will be fewer and farther between.
That won’t be the case for Grand Theft Auto 6, even if it does end up being priced at $100 (and, to be clear, Rockstar hasn’t indicated that it plans to raise the price). This is a game that players have been waiting to get their hands on for 12 years. Unlike other eagerly anticipated projects likeThe Elder Scrolls 6or last year’sDragon Age: The Veilguard, it’s also coming from a studio that doesn’t miss.
Each of the mainline Grand Theft Auto games since 3 have been genre- and era-defining hits, and the Red Dead Redemption games are similarly seismic. Rockstar might not be your taste, but it has perfected its flavor formula. Each game is bigger, better, and more tech-pushing than the last. GTA 6 can get away with charging $100, in the same way a console can cost $500. If you want something bad enough, you’ll pay whatever they ask.
It also isn’t fair that this increased price should be passed onto consumers when ballooning development costs and production times aren’t their fault.
But most games aren’t GTA 6 and it would be foolish for publishers to think that their game is. It would be like seeing Michael Jordan pull off a dunk from the free throw line and conclude that, “Oh, now everybody can start dunking from the free throw line.” Are you sure about that? GTA 6 is a once-in-a-generation event game. But, for a run-of-the-mill triple-A game with mixed reviews, a $70 price tag isn’t doing it any favors. Charging $100 for something likeStalker 2orLego Horizon Adventures, however necessary to recoup costs, would be a death sentence.
The games industry isn’t in a good place, withcancellations hitting devs hard,rampant layoffsmaking it difficult to find a living, and anincreasingly competitive landscapekeeping worthwhile games from breaking out. But, those problems can’t be solved by upselling the players. A $100 price tag would just mean those players find something else to play.
