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There are two big questions preoccupying Grand Theft Auto fans these days: Will Grand Theft Auto 6 be delayed, and how much is it going to cost? (If you're a GTA fan on PC, you get a bonus question: What the hell?)
Obviously we'll have to wait for Take-Two Interactive to make the call on those, but a Seeking Alpha report (via IGN) says Bank of America securities analyst Omar Dessouky is calling for GTA 6 to launch at a higher-than-usual price point—for the good of everyone.
Dessouky was speaking in the wake of the Interactive Innovation Conference—stylized as iicon, because cool—a game industry conference for "visionaries, thought leaders, and innovators" (ie., CEOs and money types) organized by the Entertainment Software Association to fill the void in its heart left by the collapse of E3.
Article continues below"We also heard from attendees that the industry, which is perceived as struggling, would have difficulty selling games for $80 if GTA 6 came out at $70," Dessouky said. "We think it’s in Take-Two's self-interest, as a publisher and partner to many developers, to raise the price point for the entire industry."
Nobody likes the idea of paying more for stuff, especially at a time when stuff in general is growing unmanageably more expensive because of all the other stuff happening in the world. But looking at it strictly from the perspective of someone whose only interest is creating a lot of value for shareholders, Dessouky's point is spot-on: If any game can get away with asking $80 for a basic edition, it's GTA 6—and if Take-Two breaks that seal, it won't be long before others follow. Rising tides, and all that.
Conversely, if Take-Two sticks with the $70 price point, it's going to be very difficult for other publishers to justify charging more for their games, even heavy hitters like Call of Duty and EA Sports FC. I'm not sure that's necessarily bad for the industry—I think there are far more pressing concerns right now than whether multi-billion-dollar corporations can charge an extra tenner for their wares—but Dessouky is absolutely correct that Take-Two, whichever way it goes, will set the path for the rest of the industry.
As for which way it will go, Take-Two is playing coy about the whole thing. Speaking at the same iicon conference, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said he wants to ensure that "what people pay for it feels very reasonable." But he also pointed out that big-budget games could (and, by implication, should) cost more than they do right now, because game prices have held steady over the years while everything else has gone up—which sounds like the sort of thing you say when you're getting to slap your customer base with a little of the ol' sticker shock.
My money, metaphorically speaking, is on GTA 6 coming in at a higher-than-standard price: Not the $100 earthquake that some are dreading, but $80? I'll be very surprised if it's not at least that much. We may finally get some insight on that topic later this month: Take-Two's next quarterly financial report is set for May 21.
