Would You Pay $99 For GTA 6? The Ultimate Edition's Perks Revealed

Grand Theft Auto VI is still months away from release, but Rockstar Games has now given players one of the details they had been waiting for most: the price. Anyone hoping to get a pre-order locked in this week finally has some clarity on what the next trip to Vice City will cost, and the answer is not exactly cheap. Rockstar confirmed that the standard edition of GTA VI will be priced at $79.99, while the Ultimate Edition will cost $99.99.

Converted into British currency, that works out to roughly £63 for the standard version and about £79 for the Ultimate Edition. While a higher price point for GTA VI was expected, given the scale of the game and the years of anticipation behind it, the reveal of the more expensive version has caused just as much discussion as the base game itself. That is because Rockstar has also laid out exactly what players will get if they choose to spend more.

Rockstar has confirmed what comes with the Ultimate Edition

The standard edition price of GTA VI already places it among the most expensive major releases in gaming, but Rockstar has also followed the now-familiar industry model of offering a premium version with extra content reportedly. The Ultimate Edition, priced at $99.99 (£79), is being sold with a package of exclusive bonuses that Rockstar described as an 'exclusive collection of premium vehicles, weapons, apparel, and action around every corner'.

On the face of it, some of that is what players would expect from a premium version of a blockbuster game. Exclusive outfits, special weapons, and unique vehicles have become common incentives used to push fans towards a more expensive edition.

For a series as large as Grand Theft Auto, those sorts of extras are unlikely to shock anyone. Players who want a few bonus cosmetic items or extra toys to use in-game have seen this model before, and Rockstar clearly believes GTA VI can follow the same path.

Where things become more unusual is in the mention of shops that are only accessible to players who buy the Ultimate Edition. That detail makes the premium package stand out from the usual collection of skins and bonus gear.

Locking access to in-game stores behind a more expensive edition is not the kind of perk usually associated with a single-player launch, and it is likely to be one of the parts of this reveal that draws the most attention.
Rockstar's own wording around the Ultimate Edition paints it as something designed to offer more than just a few visual extras.

The promise of 'action around every corner' suggests a version of the game with added experiences built into it, though exactly how far that goes remains one of the biggest points of curiosity following the announcement. The official website apparently provides more specific details on what is included, but the key takeaway from Rockstar's announcement is already clear enough: the Ultimate Edition is not just about looking different; it is about getting access to content that standard edition buyers will not have.

That is likely to split opinion. Some players will look at the extras and decide that paying an extra $20 (£15) is a fair trade if it means more content and more ways to engage with the game from day one. Others may be less enthusiastic about the idea of a Grand Theft Auto title placing pieces of the world itself behind a higher-priced version.

Rockstar also made one other point clear about the launch

Alongside the pricing reveal, Rockstar also used its Wednesday update to underline something else about GTA VI. At launch, the game will be a single-player experience. For now, there is no online component planned to arrive with the game itself, which means players should not expect a multiplayer mode to be available on day one unless Rockstar changes course unexpectedly.

That detail follows the pattern set by Rockstar's two biggest recent releases. Grand Theft Auto V did not launch with its online mode immediately available, and the same was true for Red Dead Redemption 2. In both cases, Rockstar introduced the multiplayer side later. With GTA V in particular, that later release became one of the company's biggest success stories, as GTA Online turned into a major source of long-term engagement and revenue for Rockstar over the past decade.

By stressing that GTA VI is currently a single-player game at launch, Rockstar seems to be managing expectations early. The focus, at least for now, is on the story experience rather than any multiplayer ecosystem that may follow later. That also makes the Ultimate Edition discussion a little more interesting, because the premium content is being sold in the context of a game that Rockstar is framing first and foremost as a solo experience.

For players considering whether to pre-order, the choice may come down to a simple question: Is the extra content enough to justify the extra money? The standard edition already carries a hefty price tag, and the Ultimate Edition asks buyers to go even further for perks that include exclusive gear and access to content not available in the cheaper version. Rockstar has now made the options clear; whether fans see that as value for money is another matter entirely.