In an era where game releases are getting more expensive in comparison to spending power this generation, this piece of news may shock no one.

Wedbush Securities managing director Michael Pachter predicted that publisher Take-Two might sell the upcoming action-adventure open world crime title Grand Theft Auto 6 at the base price of US$100 or more. The catch is that the US$100 will also add in in-game currency and additional incentives to play GTA Online.

“We think the company has plans to sell the game at a previously unheard of price point, and suspect that management can offer consumers an incentive to pay $100 or more per unit by rewarding them with a large amount of in-game currency to be spent in GTA Online.

There is precedent for integrating an online game experience with a premium game, as Activision did so with both Call of Duty Warzone and Call of Duty Mobile content prior to the release of its annual Call of Duty premium installment.

In Activision’s case, the integration led to a 40% increase in sales of Call of Duty premium; in Take-Two’s case, we think a successful integration of GTA Online and GTA VI can lead to a $100 price point for the premium game.”

The crazy part is that if this were to come true, people will still pay that amount for the latest GTA game. Rockstar Games has carved their reputation at creating best-selling titles that have long-term value and play; the company are trendsetters from the heydays of Grand Theft Auto 3 and are exempt from common practices in the games industry.

Grand Theft Auto 6 will be out for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series in the fall of 2025.