Grand Theft Auto 6 is a big deal not just for fans but for the video game industry. Many observers expect it to buoy a console market that’s stagnated in recent years. Players who were slow to upgrade from last-gen hardware will have no choice but to buy a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S if they want to play the most anticipated new blockbuster in over a decade. But what those same business analysts were not expecting was an AI arms race to fuel an unprecedented spike in console prices. Take-Two’s CEO, however, doesn’t seem too concerned.
“Look, the rising cost of hardware is not a good thing, and we wouldn’t argue that it is,” Strauss Zelnick told investors in the publishing parent company’s latest earnings call on August 7. He continued:
I don’t think it will slow us down any because, you know… we believe we’re delivering experiences that people want. However, a lower price point for hardware would be a good thing because there’d be more hardware in people’s hands. So I cannot argue this is a positive, but equally we don’t see it as a headwind either.
The executive was equally bullish in an interview with Bloomberg. He said he’d be happier if the prices of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S weren’t going up “for obvious reasons,” but is skeptical that RAMageddon will lead to a shortage of available consoles this holiday season when GTA 6 launches on November 19.
“We believe the install base around launch time will reflect our original expectations,” Zelnick told Bloomberg. “The only thing that will cause me to be concerned, not worried, but concerned, would be if we somehow felt that number was going to be smaller than we thought. But that isn’t the case.”
Sony, which has a big marketing deal with Rockstar Games for GTA 6’s launch, previously told investors that it has all the RAM it needs to supply the expected number of PS5 consoles heading into early 2027. As long as the cheapest version of a new console stays below $700, players will probably do whatever it takes to get their hands on the new open-world game, even if this is the most affordable playing a new GTA game has been in decades.