Some folks can’t wait to give their money away, and if early estimates are to be believed, GTA 6 has already taken in well over a quarter-billion dollars. It’s no secret that Grand Theft Auto VI is expected to be the biggest launch of the year, and perhaps decade, but seeing the cash flowing like water over Niagara Falls to hit record levels nearly six months before its release is another story altogether. Analytic firm Newzoo has been keeping tabs on pre-order sales figures and using that data to forecast trends for the actual launch as well.
According to its research (via VGC), over $180 million was spent in the U.S. and the five biggest European markets alone during the game’s first week of pre-orders, which began on June 25. The research firm then used a player distribution model for Grand Theft Auto V to estimate a global total, which it estimates to be in the $260 million range. According to Newzoo, this represents the largest pre-order campaign ever recorded. Even as outlandish as this estimate may seem, it shouldn’t come as a surprise given that other analysts predict total sales to exceed $3 billion.
Newzoo states that the first week’s sales are usually thought to occur as one of three potential scenarios. The first being titles that are brand new IPs where pre-orders start slowly, and sales pick up after positive reviews produce more interest. The next being for a sequel release with “performance uncertainty” when there’s a risk players are unsure if a follow up can meet expectations and thus hold off buying until more is known about the actual release and then lastly a proven sequel where fans feel confident that the developers are on track to deliver a game everyone wants and will happily pre-order like what is being seen with Rockstar’s long awaited release. It’s estimated that another 51 million units will be sold during the first actual week of release, with sales figures on track to exceed $4 billion. Given the horrible stories about recent industry-wide layoffs, the question will then be how many Rockstar or publisher Taketwo plan to cut once Grand Theft Auto VI launches.
Discussion (19 replies)
Join Discussion →GTA San Andreas was the last GTA game I tried to play seriously. It had the same issues. Aiming/shooting gameplay was lackluster. The mafia/gangster story was a turn off for me. Wanted to try GTA 4 but never got the chance even though I have the sealed PS3 disc. And never got the chance to play GTA V either. I don't think they changed anything too drastically. Correct me if I'm wrong. I just don't understand how this game got so many sales. Are people desperate to be on the wrong side of the law?
Because ... a "quarter billion" sounds so much more than a mere "250 million". :rolleyes:
That's approximately 2.5 - 3 million copies in a week, not that impressive for GTA TBH.
[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.destructoid.com/gta-6-netflix-reactions/[/URL]
People complaining about what? Theyll buy the game anyway. Whats the point of even watching this, you will buy it anyway ( those that are interested in gta obviously)
Weird thing is why netflix even pay for this, thats weird.
Woulnd it be the other way around? No matter how you slice it, its an ad.
Almost did a post on this and in the back of my mind I was wondering if Rockstar was just tying to oil the wheels for more sales or perhaps there's now new concerns they may not end up being as much as hoped for. Either way, I don't see why anyone should be complaining about this Netflix thing, it's not like they're being forced to watch it or will lose out if they don't watch (afaik).
Can't remember but maybe they're planning a anime of some sort. I can't remember if I've heard anything but given how much Netflix has dipped into game-based series I'd see it as a real possibility.
Name another game that's got close to that many pre-orders in the first week of pre-orders.
I don't know of any game that released that specific data point. The marketing gurus are not stupid they deliberately release numbers that you can't compare to anything else directly.
Cyberpunk 2077 was pre-ordered 8 million times, but it's not known how many of that was in the first week, and even if we knew, it wouldn't be comparable because pre-orders were opened much longer before release for that.
GTA VI is supposed to be the most anticipated game of all time, I just find the number underwhelming in that context, even if it is literally more than any other game.
Yeah and that 8 million pre-orders on Cyberpunk 2077 was based on like 18 months before it was released.
2.6m - 3m in 5 days vs 8 million in around ~550 days.
If its volume of orders in per orders... i bet star citizen has it best still. Lol
GTAV is the highest selling game of all time. And it's 14 years old. And still selling. If they play this right it'll beat that with room to spare.
You, Sir, are absolutely CORRECT.
In fact, I believe there is a case to be made that these fools who have pre-ordered a game that keeps them restricted to Earth and gang related violence and stereotypes and hence does NOTHING to expand the horizons of their minds, these fools should cancel and pre-order Star Citizen, a game that promises a vast expanse of galaxies to travel to and partake in countless adventures that can never be delivered by a dirty game celebrating petty crime by glamorizing it.
Come on, netizens! Do the right thing. You know THIS IS THE WAY!
Supposedly the whole netflix thing is to expose the game to more people who wouldn't necessarily buy it at all or right away but subscribe to Netflix. Six whole hour advantage, yippy skippy.
You know that's not an useful comparison, the distribution of pre-orders is not linear along the entire window. Usually it is highest at the start and close to the end, with a big lull in the middle.