GTA 6 Is Setting A Dangerous New Precedent For The Gaming Industry We Never Saw Coming

While we’ve long since known that the incredibly long-awaited release of Grand Theft Auto 6 would be too big to fail, Rockstar’s latest pricing decisions have still been met with an absolutely massive wave of backlash. It’s not hard to see why, either, as GTA 6‘s launch pricing and deluxe edition ‘bonuses’ are painting some horrifying implications for the gaming industry as a whole moving forward.

Even putting aside the lack of a physical release and the $80 price tag, that isn’t too much of a surprise, even if it’s worrying that we’ll likely see plenty of imitation from other Triple-A developers in the future that can get away with it, the concept of its deluxe edition is going way past the line of what many fans think is acceptable, even for a series as expansive as Grand Theft Auto.

gta 6 new key art — New *Grand Theft Auto 6* key art.

Even if we can begrudgingly accept GTA 6‘s $80 price tag for the sheer scale and amount of hype surrounding the highly anticipated release, fans won’t even be able to experience everything the game has to offer on launch day unless they’re willing to spend another $20 on the $100 deluxe edition of the game.

While the Deluxe Edition does include some of the generic staples you would expect from a launch-day DLC, like new vehicles, weapons, skins, and other cosmetics, Rockstar has made the baffling decision to lock several in-game features and stores like tattoo parlors, car mechanics, and clothing shops entirely behind the paywall, removing content that has become an expected staple for the series at this point after GTA 5.

Although GTA 6 will still allow you to access the features like changing outfits, getting tattoos, and customizing your vehicles at other locations throughout the game, the fact that you can stumble across a building that you won’t even be able to make use of without dropping another $20 on top of the already inflated game price feels more than a little ridiculous, and offers a concerning glimpse into the future of the gaming industry.

Lucia leans back against a table in a clothing store in GTA 6.

Given that GTA 6 will have a delayed GTA Online release and won’t be able to make the expected millions in Shark Card sales right out the gate, it makes sense that Rockstar would want to have some additional incentives to boost its profits at launch, but the decision to cut out content from the game rather than adding bonus features hasn’t been going over very well with fans either.

With more eyes than ever on GTA 6 and the success of its release, decisions like these made by Rockstar are more than likely to be imitated by any other developers that think they are able to get away with it, while offering a new kind of microtransaction for players to be worried about popping up in future releases.

While the sheer amount of backlash will hopefully ward off too many imitators that want to replicate Grand Theft Auto 6‘s marketing decisions and premium price point, if Rockstar is able to get away with the changes, it could very well be the start of a new trend for the Triple-A industry moving forward.