Analyst Claims Rockstar Should Price GTA 6 at $200, Calling It 'The Last Great Game' Before AI Takes Over

An analyst has suggested that Rockstar's $80 price tag for Grand Theft Auto 6 is less than half of what the game is truly worth. Ben Thompson, author of the Stratechery newsletter, told TBPN that Rockstar should have charged significantly more for the game. While a $100 Ultimate Edition exists, Thompson believes even that is underpriced. He argues that GTA 6 represents a decade of human effort—'blood, sweat, and tears'—completed before AI game development tools became widespread, making it a masterpiece worth around $200.

'Rockstar is charging way too little for this game,' Thompson said. 'They should be charging like $200 for this game. GTA 6 is the last great game. It was mostly all made pre-AI. It is the pinnacle of triple-A craftsmanship. Years and years and years of blood, sweat, and tears.' He noted that Twitter analysts are even counting cigarette butts outside Rockstar's offices to gauge crunch time.

Rockstar confirmed GTA 6's $80 price (and $100 Ultimate Edition) last month after widespread speculation. There was much debate over whether the game would be priced higher than any previous title to recoup its massive development costs, estimated between $1 billion and $2 billion. However, most analysts predicted a conservative pricing strategy to maximize the player base—pricing it at $100 would still sell millions but could deter future revenue from in-game purchases. While the launch focuses on single-player, Rockstar likely eyes long-term profits from GTA Online's next iteration, similar to GTA 5's multiplayer success.

'I feel compelled to buy GTA 6 just in honor of it existing, even if I don't know if I'll ever play it,' Thompson concluded. 'And I'll be happy to pay $200.' IGN previously polled analysts on whether GTA 6's $80 price could lead to more expensive games.

Recently, Rockstar has ramped up marketing for GTA 6 ahead of its November launch. New screenshots look stunning, but fans criticized the decision to include download codes in physical copies instead of discs—a move that aligns with Sony's announcement to eventually phase out PS5 game discs. There's no sign of a disc-based GTA 6 launch later. Behind the scenes, more Rockstar employees are attempting to unionize, and don't expect 60fps on current consoles.