Rockstar Games on Thursday announced that pre-orders for the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI will begin from June 25 onwards.
"Pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto VI will officially begin on June 25 on digital storefronts and at other select retailers," it announced in an X post.
The gaming giant also revealed the official downloadable cover art for the game that has dominated pop culture for years after the 2013 release of Grand Theft Auto V.
Set in the fictional city of Leonida in Las Vegas, you have Jason and Lucia—the game's two protagonists—relying on each other to wade through the dark underbelly of the sunniest city in western US.
A quick look at the website (click here) shows up the widely watched trailers for the game, with a third one expected to show up before it is finally out on November 19 this year for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
You also get a number of HD screenshots from the game, in addition to the official cover photos featuring the neon-coloured retro-style 'VI'.
More importantly, now that the pre-order date is out, how much will the game cost?
Indeed, the question of the game's pricing in India and the rest of the globe has dominated the conversation over the past year, with fans waiting for any kind of price reveals from Rockstar parent Take-Two's earnings calls.
So far, all we know are industry estimates, analyst predictions, and comments from Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick—all centred on the central rumour of GTA 6 being the first AAA title to be priced at $100 (about Rs 9,430).
While Zelnick has only spoken of fair prices, analysts such as Bank of America have previously suggested GTA 6 could launch at $80, while others in the industry have projected a standard edition price between $69.99 and $79.99.
Deluxe and premium editions are commonly expected at $99.99-109.99, while the prices for collector's editions could soar, given that the GTA 6 reportedly cost about $1-1.5 billion to make.
For Indian gamers that get AAA games at an average of Rs 4,999-5,599 at launch, pricing the standard edition at $70 would mean a cost of Rs 5,999-6,299.
Pricing it at $80 would set Indian gamers back by Rs 6,499-6,999, while a $100 base rate could, as mentioned, see its price climb beyond Rs 9,000.
For now, all eyes are on the next marketing beat, where the third trailer, and hopefully, a hint at the price, may be revealed.
