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GTA 6’s $100 Ultimate Edition Is Leading the $80 Standard Edition in Preorders

Sensor Tower's early data puts the $100 Ultimate Edition at 89% of preorders, while Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick says avid fans may be driving the split and the pricier package adds digital content without changing gameplay.

Mihaela Kicevski3 weeks ago

85 2 minutes read

Grand Theft Auto VI character in a nightclub surrounded by dancing figures and colorful lights.

Grand Theft Auto VI is drawing most early preorders for its $100 Ultimate Edition, which currently accounts for 89% of all preorders in Sensor Tower data.

On Xbox, about 90% of buyers chose the Ultimate Edition, while the figure reached 88.5% on PlayStation.

Zelnick made the comparison in an interview, saying the sales split was not even: “Actually, it is skewing more to the premium edition.” He connected the early preference to fans buying ahead of launch, adding that “the most avid consumers are the ones that are pre-ordering.”

What the two GTA 6 editions include

The Standard Edition costs $80, while the Ultimate Edition carries a $20 price premium at $100. Zelnick summed up the difference by saying, “You get additional content” with the more expensive version.

The extras described so far are digital bonuses, including access to a handful of stores, rather than gameplay-changing features. The Ultimate Edition also does not include physical collectibles.

Zelnick also said Take-Two chose an $80 Standard Edition rather than pricing the regular version at $100, as some early reports had suggested. The goal, he explained, is for the player experience to offer more value than the purchase price.

The premium-heavy preorder split follows Take-Two’s earlier description of GTA VI’s pre-order start as strong, although the company has not provided a standalone total. Zelnick’s latest comment shows which version early buyers prefer, but it does not establish how the two editions will compare after launch.

Karl Kontus, Sensor Tower’s SVP and GM of Video Game Insights, said the current split should not be treated as final. He said special editions usually account for around 10% to 20% of preorders, while 50% is already a level he has encountered only occasionally, making the current 89% share unlike anything he had seen before. Kontus expects the editions to move closer to a 50/50 split as more casual buyers place orders, although he still expects the Ultimate Edition’s share to remain well above the usual industry range. Most pre-orders should arrive in the final week or so. He also described Grand Theft Auto VI as difficult to forecast because there is no established comparison for its eventual performance. With Grand Theft Auto VI’s wider marketing campaign still ahead, the current lead could shrink as more buyers enter the market.

Grand Theft Auto VI remains scheduled for November 19, 2026.

In the same CNBC interview, Zelnick pointed to Grand Theft Auto V as a game that continued selling long after launch. Take-Two has sold 230 million copies of it across three console generations, although Zelnick cautioned that the company cannot assume GTA VI will follow exactly the same path.

Take-Two has no early official price cut planned

Take-Two does not have official plans to lower Grand Theft Auto VI’s price before Christmas, although individual retailers can choose their own discounts. Any retailer that cuts the price would be reducing its own margin, Zelnick said. He also said Take-Two preserved its pricing for Grand Theft Auto V “for a very long time—much longer than a standard release of an entertainment property.”

Will the Ultimate Edition keep its lead after launch? Share your thoughts in the comments, and follow along on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.

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