Imagine that you magically have $80, or 3,320 hryvnias at the current exchange rate, in your pocket. The question of what to spend it on is rather philosophical and very individual, because there are many things whose cost is included in a similar amount. But there is a high probability that soon you will be able to buy only one video game with them, which may also turn out to be "6 out of 10" or "5 out of 10". How did this happen, what impact will the new pricing policy have on the entertainment industry and what should those who are not ready to pay such money do? Let's try to figure it out in this text.
What started the conversation about $80 games?
Once again, the topic of a potential increase in the price of video games has surfaced in the context of the upcoming release of the most anticipated game of our time – Grand Theft Auto VI. Some players can say as much as they want that they don’t care about it, but the release of the new GTA will definitely be a large-scale and important event for the entire entertainment industry. Grand Theft Auto V was released in 2013, but it is still selling well (an incredible 215 million copies have been sold so far!) and remains unattainable in some respects even compared to modern games. Of course, Grand Theft Auto VI is expected to be a real revolution.
It is clear that the "revolution" requires a huge budget. The exact costs of Rockstar on Grand Theft Auto VI are currently unknown, besides, the development will last at least another year, and then the game needs to be actively supported with updates and new content. However, there are already rumors that the budget of the game is $ 2 billion, which automatically makes it the most expensive game in the world. And this money needs to be recouped somehow.
Behind Grand Theft Auto VI is a powerful brand and almost complete trust of players. There is almost no doubt that the new part of the famous series will give players tens, hundreds, thousands of hours of pleasure, while at the same time surprising them with technical achievements, story and other elements. Grand Theft Auto VI is definitely one of the games that can afford to cost more than the current standard of $70.
In January 2025, analyst Matthew Ball published a major presentation on the state of the gaming industry in 2025. There is a lot of analytical information about the potential growth points of the video game market, and GTA VI is given an important place. After all, this game can create a new standard for pricing in the gaming industry, which is what many developers from various studios hope for. Ball suggested that GTA VI could cost players all of $100. This will not affect sales, and the industry will be able to get more money from one player.
The price of Grand Theft Auto VI is still unknown, with Rockstar and its parent company Take-Two taking a wait-and-see approach. But changes have begun even without GTA VI. At the presentation of the new console, Nintendo announced that Mario Kart World for Nintendo Switch 2 costs $80 for the digital version, and for the physical cartridge you will have to pay the full $90. At the same time, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser emphasized that this price will not become a new standard for the company.
"What you're seeing this time is variable pricing. We're going to look at each game, really look at the development time and cost, the breadth and depth of the gameplay, if you will, the longevity and replayability of the gaming experience. We're going to look at all of these factors and more to determine the right price for the games," Bowser said about the price of the new Mario Kart World.
Nintendo was the first major company to raise prices for its games. However, Nintendo games almost always receive extremely high ratings, and the company's audience is extremely loyal. Therefore, although the high price of Mario Kart World has become the subject of active discussions, it did not prevent good preliminary sales. In addition, the game can be purchased together with the Nintendo Switch 2, such a bundle is very popular.
Microsoft was the next to announce a price increase. The company raised the prices of the Xbox Series X/S consoles, and also announced that all major games from internal studios will increase in price by $10 starting from the New Year holidays of 2025, that is, in December of this year. So, the price of AAA games from the Microsoft Gaming department will also reach $80. But let's not forget that all Microsoft games are available as part of the Game Pass subscription from the first day of release.
There is no official word from Sony yet about the $80 PlayStation exclusives. It is the last of the "big players" in the game console market to comment on a potential new pricing policy. But analysts and experts believe that Sony's decision could be decisive.
Why do games have to become more expensive at all?
The answer to the question in the subtitle relies on a couple of main factors – inflation and the high cost of developing modern games. Developing an average AAA game today can cost several hundred million dollars. And we are not talking about some outstanding projects, but about ordinary ones. Expensive development tools, advanced technologies, the general increase in the cost of living in different countries, especially in America – all this affects game budgets.
In recent years, the price of games has been fixed at $ 70, which has become the norm with the advent of the current generation of consoles. Additionally, Ubisoft and its ill-fated Skull and Bones contributed to this. Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot called the latter a "AAAA game". Yes, exactly four letters, because this is supposedly an extremely expensive and incredible game. The 59/100 rating on Metacritic looks quite ironic with such statements. Mezha gave the game a 5.5/10.
However, Skull and Bones allowed other developers to massively change the price of their games. Not everyone dared to do this, but there were more games for $70. And many of them had better reviews than Skull and Bones.
In addition, the gaming industry is still feeling the effects of the 2022-2024 recession. Thousands of specialists were left without work, dozens of well-known studios ceased to exist. News about the closure of projects still occurs, albeit not so often.
For example, at the end of May, EA closed the Cliffhanger Games studio and canceled the development of the Black Panther game under the Marvel license. Therefore, increasing the price of games is a logical move to improve the state of the gaming industry as a whole and make life a little easier for individual developers and entire studios.
Former Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide president Shuhei Yoshida believes that $70 and $80 games are still "robbery from developers" when compared to other entertainment industries in terms of enjoyment and variety. He noted that in the 1990s, many new games cost $60, but adjusted for inflation, he said, that's $80, and the official U.S. government inflation calculators generally say $147. Yoshida noted that game companies came to think about new pricing policies "too late."
"Today, everything in video games is more advanced and technologically complex than ever before, and therefore requires more resources. Of course, each publisher or manufacturer sets the price of their games independently, but in the end, the crux of the matter is production costs. That's why the industry is so interested in diversifying their revenues to continue releasing AAA games that the public buys in the first place," Yoshida expressed similar thoughts regarding developers' focus on premium projects with high prices.
The former president of Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide also shared an interesting opinion about the huge number of remasters and remakes of video games. He said that developers are not taking on them in an attempt to evoke a sense of nostalgia in players. It's just that remasters and remakes are easier and cheaper to develop. Studios use them to earn money for new premium projects. That is, the increase in game prices may lead to the emergence of more original projects, because it will be easier for developers to form a budget.
Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick also notes the impact of inflation on the gaming industry. Because of it, the real price of video games only decreases over the years, companies receive less and less profit. At the same time, he carefully bypasses the issue of $80 games and notes that Take-Two Interactive tries to take into account the feelings and ability to pay of players.
"Again, our job is to maximize the value delivered and then offer it at a significantly reduced price to optimize the consumer experience both during the game and when paying the bill. That's our job. I really think the value delivered is huge and continues to grow, and that's our job," Zelnik told GamesIndustry.biz.
Some numbers for comparison. During the SNES and Sega Genesis era, cartridges cost $50-70. That’s about $100-150+ when adjusted for inflation. The transition from cartridges to discs has brought the price of games down to $50, but even that price, adjusted for inflation, turns into $90-100. That means video games are now the cheapest they’ve ever been. If you want to check the numbers yourself, here’s the official inflation calculator from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Politics also affects the price of video games. Many studios are based in the US, so tariffs and tax changes by Donald Trump could significantly increase the cost of development and, as a result, the price of final products. The tariff war between the US and China is also sure to become an additional factor in video game pricing.
Haven't developers learned to fight inflation with other methods?
The gaming industry has long known that a company's real profits from buying a single copy of a game fall due to inflation, and simply raising prices is perceived negatively by players. Therefore, developers and publishers are looking for additional methods of earning money.
DLC, microtransactions, premium editions, subscriptions to various services, season and battle passes, paid upgrades for versions for new consoles – these are just a few of the methods of additional earnings on video games. And players have accepted similar rules of the game. In 2006, the developers of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion received a flurry of criticism for adding horse armor for $2.50. Today, a cosmetic item for $2.50 is not at all surprising, on the contrary – it is perceived as something cheap. Especially when compared to a skin for League of Legends for $499. Yes, a cosmetic item for the price of a console, don’t be surprised.
In today's realities, buying a game outright can only be the first expense. Then the developers will try to force you to spend additional money inside the game. Ubisoft and the Assassin's Creed role-playing trilogy were especially criticized for this practice. Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla sometimes come down to grinding, because enemies can become too strong due to insufficient character leveling. However, real-money "time savers" will help even out the odds.
They try to monetize literally everything. Previously, microtransactions were mainly found in mobile and free-to-play games, but today they can be seen in major releases like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. Microtransactions have become so widespread that they now generate a large share of gaming companies' profits.
For example, in the first quarter of 2025, microtransactions generated 77% of Take-Two Interactive’s revenue. And in 2024, PC gamers spent more on microtransactions than on games themselves – 58%, according to a report by Newzoo. The issue of microtransactions is a big topic in itself. What’s important to us now is that this is just one of dozens of methods of earning money for game companies to offset inflation.
Developers try to make money in a way that doesn't require too much effort or resources, although this is true for any business. For example, for extra money you can get a digital soundtrack or artbook for the game. That is, images and files that were already created during the development of the game. Recently, early access to games in premium editions has been gaining popularity. The ability to start playing a few days earlier is available in the remake of Silent Hill 2, DOOM: The Dark Ages, Starfield, Hogwarts Legacy, Diablo IV and many other games. You can also play earlier than others for extra money in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach.
The gaming industry has become addicted to the extra cost of video games. It's hard to find a game these days without DLC or other monetization methods. So in a way, video games aren't worth $70 or even $80 anymore.
A logical question arises. If game companies do switch to a standard price of $80, will they abandon aggressive monetization? Will there be fewer microtransactions and DLC? Because otherwise it turns out that players will pay more for the same thing. And this is just one of the many nuances that will arise due to the potential increase in prices for video games.
Is it fair to increase the price of games from the players' perspective?
Up until now, we've tried to look at the potential price hikes in video games from the perspective of businesses, developers, publishers, and the industry as a whole. But now let's look at it from the perspective of regular gamers, because that's who we are. And then for every argument, there's a counterargument.
The transition from expensive cartridges to cheap optical discs, and then to digital distribution, has reduced the cost of producing and distributing each individual copy. In addition, the emergence and flourishing of numerous additional sources of monetization (DLC, microtransactions) that were not common in the era of expensive cartridges is often not taken into account. Therefore, a simple comparison of base prices adjusted for inflation is incomplete.
It does not reflect either the reduction in production and distribution costs per unit for the publisher and developer, or the total amount a player spends on a game over its life cycle through additional content. This raises the question of the ethics of using the inflationary equivalence price argument without taking into account changes in the structure of costs and revenues in the games industry.
There is an apparent contradiction between the financial difficulties that supposedly lead to layoffs and studio closures and the simultaneous increase in product prices. This may indicate attempts by large corporations to shift costs, including those associated with trade wars, restructuring, and failed projects, onto consumers and employees in order to maintain or increase their own profitability. That is, gamers are essentially paying out of their own pockets for the mistakes of studios and publishers. Some might say that it is the solvency of gamers that supports all these mistakes.
Also, let's not forget that inflation affects not only companies, but also ordinary people. And the average gamer doesn't have many ways to overcome it. The rise in video game prices can be critical for many players and potentially close or significantly complicate access to their favorite hobby.
The reaction of players to individual news about price increases already indicates not just dissatisfaction, but a potential paradigm shift in game consumption. If earlier buying a AAA game at release was standard practice for many enthusiasts, then the price of $80 could turn it into a "premium" experience, available not to everyone or only for special, most anticipated releases. Gaming has never been a cheap pleasure, and price increases make the gap between players with different income levels even wider.
Some gamers say they will become "very selective" and buy fewer games at full price, planning to wait for discounts or look for alternatives. These "alternatives" may not always be legal, which is a shame. It also means that the window for full-price sales may shrink, and the so-called "long tail" of discounted and subscription sales will become even more important for publishers.
If players massively refuse to buy games for $80, this may encourage publishers and developers to more actively add their own projects to services like Xbox Game Pass or PlayStation Plus. Because each such deal brings an instant solid amount to the game authors. Thus, increasing the price of individual purchases may strengthen the trend towards service consumption models.
It remains an open question whether publishers are willing to take the potential sales hit of a higher-priced release, hoping for a higher revenue per copy sold and long-term monetization through services and DLC, or whether this is a risky bet that may not pay off for all types of games. But it certainly won't make life any easier for the average gamer.
The gap between the views of players and developers was demonstrated by the situation with Randy Pitchford (President and CEO of The Gearbox Entertainment Company) and Borderlands 4. At PAX East 2025, Pitchford hinted that Borderlands 4 could cost $80. And separately emphasized that "true fans" would be able to buy the game at a high price. This statement caused outrage among players, who began to leave negative reviews for various parts of Borderlands. Pitchford had to apologize.
However, this specific situation can be linked to the general dislike of the gaming community for Randy Pitchford. The scandal with the flash drive with supposedly child porn will probably never be solved for him, although in the end the appeal on this matter was closed, and Pitchford was acquitted. But in general, you can find very few positive reviews about the increase in game prices from players.
I personally conducted a small survey on Twitter/X regarding price increases to immediately understand the opinions of the Ukrainian audience of players. And there you can see that almost no one is willing to pay $80 for games. With a glaring exception in the form of Grand Theft Auto VI, of course.
What to do if prices still increase?
The prospect of seeing $80 price tags on all AAA games is becoming increasingly real. Industry representatives give their own arguments: inflation, which is devaluing the former $60 and $70, crazy development budgets reaching hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars, and the desire to provide players with a "revolutionary" experience. But what about ordinary players who don't have extra money in their pockets for every new product? Does this mean that they will have to give up their favorite hobby or significantly limit themselves?
Don't jump to conclusions. Even in this new pricing reality, there are strategies and alternatives that can help you continue to enjoy gaming without blowing a hole in your budget.
The first thing to realize is that not every game will cost $80. Publishers, while talking about rising costs, understand perfectly well that the audience's ability to pay is not unlimited. It is very likely that such a price will become the prerogative of only the largest, most hyped franchises, focused on the core audience - hardcore players, ready to pay a premium price for the most anticipated projects of their favorite studios.
These are the people who buy the game on release day, perhaps in the most expensive Deluxe edition with early access. It seems that they are the ones that companies are betting on by raising the price tags. Ultimately, analysts believe that "the market will withstand it", referring to the willingness of some players to pay the full $100+ for a few days of early access. Such accents will lead to a decrease in overall video game sales, but studio profits will only increase.
But this core audience does not represent the entire market. And this opens up opportunities for other segments.
Now you can hear that modern gamers want smaller games for less money, that is, not AAA, AA games. This, by the way, is not only a question of money, but also of free time, because not everyone has hundreds of hours on the conditional Elden Ring or Persona 5. It seems that this segment can significantly strengthen its own positions.
Even publishers themselves don't always go all-in. For example, Take-Two, which owns Rockstar Games, is releasing Mafia: The Old Country for $50. This demonstrates flexible pricing and an understanding that not every project will "pull" the maximum price tag.
"Mid-range" games are often created by smaller teams, with smaller budgets, but with no less enthusiasm and original ideas. They may not impress with the latest generation of photorealistic graphics ( they can actually impress, thanks to the available engines and asset libraries - ed. note ), but they make up for it with gameplay, plot and atmosphere. A striking example is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 , the main gaming hit of spring 2025 and one of the main candidates for the title of game of the year. Clair Obscur is definitely capable of giving unforgettable impressions, and its developers from Sandfall Interactive hope that its example will make players think about their own gaming habits and give more chances to AA games.
"I think when the price of AAA games increases, it creates more opportunities for games of a more modest scale and setting their price in the $40-50 range. I don't think anyone who played Expedition 33 will feel that they didn't get a decent experience for their money," said Matthew Handrahan, portfolio director at Kepler Interactive, who promoted Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, about the AA segment.
Rising prices for AAA flagships may push gamers to take a closer look at such projects. Publishers that can offer quality games for $40-50 risk hitting the jackpot by attracting that part of the audience for whom $80 is too much.
Indie games have also long ceased to be a niche product for a narrow circle of connoisseurs. Today, it is a powerful market segment that generates significant profits and offers an incredible variety of genres and ideas. Often, it is indie developers who are not afraid to experiment, take risks, and create truly unique projects that are remembered for a long time.
The main trump card of indie is the price. Most of these games cost much less than AAA titles, often in the range of $10-30. In the context of the rise in the price of "big" games, it is the indie segment that can become a real salvation for players looking for high-quality and inexpensive entertainment. Some analysts speak of a "golden era" for indie developers, who can offer fresh and emotional projects at an affordable price.
Of course, there are nuances here too. First, you shouldn't expect all indie games to remain super cheap. The growing popularity of the segment and inflationary processes may lead to a gradual, though not as significant as in AAA, increase in prices for some particularly successful indie hits. Second, there is huge competition on the indie scene, and finding a truly high-quality project among thousands of releases can be difficult. Still, the potential for players here is huge.
Additionally, let's be honest, the higher the official price of games, the more attractive alternative, not always legal, ways of obtaining them become. Talks about players turning to "pirated" content more often are already heard on forums and social networks. This is a sad but predictable consequence.
In addition to outright piracy, there is the so-called "gray market": buying activation keys on third-party sites at a lower price, purchasing accounts with shared access, etc. For some players, especially in regions with lower purchasing power, this may be the only way to get access to expensive new products. Global publishers, setting prices in dollars, often do not take into account regional features, which makes games unreasonably expensive for many countries. This, in turn, may slow down the growth of legal sales in such regions and stimulate the development of "gray" schemes.
It's important to remember that not all companies will rush to raise prices. Some big players, such as Electronic Arts, have so far said they have no plans to raise prices to $80, focusing on the "incredible quality and value" of their $70 products. This could be both a strategic move to attract a more price-sensitive audience and a realistic assessment of the risks. After all, if gamers massively refuse to buy games at the new price, this could lead to a significant drop in sales that is not offset by the higher cost of a single copy.
And here we come to the main thing - the power of the wallet. It is the players who "vote" for a particular pricing policy with their purchasing decisions. If a significant part of the audience really becomes "very selective", starts waiting for discounts or actively uses alternative methods of obtaining games, publishers will be forced to react to this.
If $80 becomes the new norm for flagships, we still have plenty of ways to keep playing without spending too much.
Subscriptions: Services like Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Plus already offer huge libraries of games for a monthly fee that's significantly less than the cost of a single new game. Microsoft generally adds all of its exclusives to Game Pass on the day of release. It's likely that the high prices for individual games will only increase the popularity of such models.
Discounts. The good old rule of "wait for a sale" will be more relevant than ever. Most games get significant discounts sooner or later, especially during seasonal sales on Steam, PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, eShop, and other digital stores.
Free game giveaways on the Epic Games Store. Epic launched a weekly free game giveaway on its own platform back in December 2018. Over the past 6.5 years, players have been able to collect a good collection of old but high-quality games on this service. Among them are such hits as Deathloop, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, GTA V, Dead Island 2, Jurassic World Evolution 2, Kingdom Come: Deliverance, SIFU and many others. You may not like EGS, but in view of the future increase in the price of AAA games, it is worth watching the giveaways on this service.
Backlog. Every gamer probably has a list of games they bought on sale but never played. Often, there are real gems hidden there that will give you no less pleasure than a hyped new product.
Free-to-Play. Don't forget about the huge market for free-to-play games, especially popular on PC and mobile platforms. Many of them offer quality gameplay and hundreds of hours of fun without having to pay for the game itself (although you should be careful with microtransactions there).
Swap and used disc market: If you prefer physical copies, there's always the option to swap discs with friends or buy used games, which is much cheaper.
Regional pricing and VPNs (be careful). Some digital stores have regional pricing, which may be lower. While using a VPN to change region is often against the terms of service, some players resort to such methods.
Rising video game prices are certainly an unpleasant trend for gamers. However, it does not mean the end of gaming. By adapting our purchasing habits, being more careful about our game choices, exploring alternative market segments, and taking advantage of affordable ways to save money, everyone can continue to enjoy their favorite hobby.
The main thing is to remember that it is we, the players, who shape demand, and the industry, one way or another, will be forced to listen to our voices and wallets. Perhaps this "price crisis" will be the impetus for a healthier and more balanced market in the future.
PS Although Ukrainians won't even have to get used to "everything for $100" gaming, some basic editions are already more expensive here.