The fee of console gaming has turn into significantly costlier in recent months. Sony hiked the value of PS5 hardware in April, which suggests a brand new PS5 now starts at $600, and a PS5 Pro now costs $900. More recently, Sony raised the value of PlayStation Plus, which is required for online gaming. Microsoft, too, has increased the value of the Xbox Series X and S, even though it has cut the value of Xbox Game Pass.
GTA 6 might be essentially the most anticipated video game of all time, and it is anticipated to interrupt sales records. But additionally it is coming out on PS5 and Xbox Series X and S only — there isn’t a PC version at launch. Which means that you need a contemporary console to play it, and there shall be many who shall be seeking to buy one for the primary time simply to play GTA 6 this November.
But could the high cost of a PlayStation or Xbox in 2026 put potential latest console gamers off? Could the rising cost of entry limit the potential success of even GTA 6? I put that to Strauss Zelnick, boss of Rockstar parent company Take-Two, ahead of the corporate’s latest financial results. He dismissed the concept, pointing to a ‘in case you construct it, they are going to come’ attitude amongst consumers, even during economically tough times. But, inside that bullishness, Zelnick did express an awareness that buyers are feeling the cash pressure.
“In real dollars, the price of frontline video games has declined materially within the last 30 years,” Zelnick said. “Frontline prices haven’t gone up very much even within the context of inflation. But from our standpoint around here, what we are able to do to make a difference is all the time deliver an experience that’s so significantly better than what people pay for, that they are thrilled to purchase our titles. Our job is to make the perfect entertainment on earth and that is true across the board.
“Should you give people what they need within the entertainment business, they are going to come out for it. But I’m sensitive to the proven fact that so many individuals are facing economic challenges.”
When publicly traded corporations make their financial projections, they list assumptions that factor into their calculations. This current financial yr is anticipated to interrupt all types of revenue records for Take-Two, which you’d expect given the discharge of GTA 6. But inside that’s an assumption that the console install base continues to grow. That’s, people proceed to purchase the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S.
Is that a given though? In the course of the last financial quarter, Sony sold just 1.5 million PS5 consoles, down 46% year-over-year. Microsoft doesn’t report console sales, but did say recently that Xbox hardware revenues had plummeted 33% year-over-year. And what in regards to the install base GTA 6 is launching into? PS5 has sold greater than 93 million units, as of the tip of March 2026. Again, Microsoft doesn’t report Xbox Series X and S sales, but we all know the consoles lag far behind the PS5. Zelnick has said in interviews that the console install base isn’t quite at 150 million yet, and we’re nearly six years into the generation.
So, with GTA 6 launching in only six months, how does Zelnick feel in regards to the console install base because it stands, and Take-Two’s assumption that it can grow.
“We feel wonderful in regards to the install base now,” Zelnick said. “Obviously we imagine that there will be growth within the install base between now and the launch of GTA 6, partially related to the vacation season and normal growth, and console sales occurs around that point of yr. And in addition we do think that GTA 6 will drive some growth.”
The discharge date of GTA 6 here could be very vital: November 19, 2026. That’s just per week before this yr’s Black Friday sales event, which falls on November 27. Will the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S get any decent discounts for this sales period? Will Sony and Microsoft have enough console stock to capitalize on heightened interest, given the rising cost of producing and distribution, and memory shortages brought on by the AI boom?
There are a number of aspects in play, but you possibly can’t help but feel the discharge of GTA 6 is one in all the most important moments for this console generation, maybe even its most vital moment. And we haven’t even spoken in regards to the price of GTA 6 itself. Zelnick talks about offering value for money, and sometimes points out, as he did to me this week, that the price of console gaming hasn’t risen all that much if you take note of inflation. Does this indicate GTA 6 will cost north of $70? Some analysts think it can cost $80, others even higher.
We’ve got plenty more from our Strauss Zelnick interview, including confirmation of the GTA 6 release date, putting to bed delay fears, in addition to his thoughts on GTA 6 marketing, which is anticipated to kick off alongside pre-orders this summer.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You possibly can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.