Rockstar's GTA VI Budget Tops $1 Billion, Outpacing $700 Million AAA Rivals
Updated
Updated · Engadget · Aug 29
Rockstar's GTA VI Budget Tops $1 Billion, Outpacing $700 Million AAA Rivals
2 articles · Updated · Engadget · Aug 29
Summary
$1 billion to $1.5 billion in estimated spending puts Grand Theft Auto VI on track to become the most expensive video game ever made, with Rockstar yet to disclose an official figure.
Nearly a decade of development, a vast open world and 600,000 animations—about double Red Dead Redemption 2 and far above GTA V's 55,000—have driven costs far beyond typical blockbuster games.
$700 million for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and about $220 million for Sony's Horizon Forbidden West and The Last of Us: Part II show how sharply AAA budgets have risen, but still trail GTA VI.
November 2026 is now GTA VI's target after delays from 2025 and May 2026, while reports of crunch and labor disputes underscore the human cost of ever-larger productions.
$10 billion in lifetime revenue from GTA V, including ongoing online spending, helps explain why Take-Two and Rockstar are willing to back a game expected to sell for years.