Now that’s Grand Theft, indeed.
Grand Theft Auto fans are blasting what they call “greedy” pricing and paywalled content tied to the long-awaited next entry in the blockbuster video game franchise.
Rockstar Games, the studio behind “Grand Theft Auto VI,” caught players off guard last week by unveiling two editions of the upcoming title as pre-orders opened ahead of its Nov. 19 launch.
The standard version is priced at $80 — already $10 above the typical industry benchmark — but many longtime players were frustrated to learn that a wide range of story-related content, including access to shops, vehicles, car upgrades, clothing, tattoos, weapons, missions and more, appears to be reserved for the $100 “ultimate edition.”
“They clearly wanted to charge $100 for the game but were scared of the backlash,” said Andrew Duran, a PC gamer and longtime GTA fan who bought a $600 PlayStation solely to play the game in November, since no PC release is currently scheduled.
“There’s no other reason they would paywall a bunch of story content and shops throughout the in-game world,” he added.
Other players echoed the criticism, accusing Rockstar Games of being “greedy.”
Some longtime fans said they were baffled by the pricing strategy, arguing that it reflects how much the economy has changed. Several pointed back to 2013, when GTA V debuted and the same company offered a bundle featuring the game, a PlayStation 3 and headphones for $300.
EXCLUSIVE: Andy Burnham's Policies Poised to Benefit His Wife Financially
Gamers also expressed their fears that this pricing strategy could be just the latest aspect of daily life that is seeing prices soar as businesses cater to deep-pocketed customers willing to spend anything — driving prices up for everyone else.
“I can’t help but feel this is what the developer actually wants the standard version to be, while its $80 version is feeling distinctly like a Lite Edition,” Molly Taylor, a gaming reporter, wrote in an opinion piece in PC Gamer magazine.
Taylor went on to call the company’s pricing scheme “anti-consumer” and leaves her concerned for the future of the video games industry.
Beyond just the “ridiculous” $100 price tag for the full, unrestricted version of the game — fans pointed out an additional obstacle will likely turn into a massive payday for Rockstar Games off of the backs of unsuspecting players.
Pre-ordering the game comes with a “free month” of GTA + for everyone who purchases before the Nov. 19 release date, which gamers described as a “trap,” since the billing on the premium online gaming membership auto-renews after the month ends.
The “physical” version of the games won’t include a disc, just the case with a code for a digital download inside, according to the company.
But the price tag isn’t scaring any fans away.
A recent poll of over 10,000 gamers found that over 80% plan on purchasing the $100 edition of the game, according to Insider Gaming.
In the first 24 hours of pre-orders, Grand Theft Auto VI supposedly surpassed 39 million pre-orders worldwide, generating more than $3 billion in revenue and already turning profit on its estimated $2 billion budget, according to USA Today.
