GTA 6 Players Are Choosing to Pre-Order the Ultimate Edition Over The Standard Edition
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Post By
Emmie
- August 11, 2026
Pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto 6 are officially live, and players are opting for the top-tier version in surprisingly high numbers. Despite a premium $99.99 price tag, the Ultimate Edition is outperforming the $79.99 standard release as massive fan anticipation drives early sales.
Speaking in an interview with CNBC, Strauss Zelnick, the CEO of Rockstar Games’ parent company, Take-Two Interactive, confirmed that the early sales figures are trending toward the higher-end package, noting that pre-orders "have gone much better than expected."
Hardcore Fans Driving Early Sales Numbers
Zelnick highlighted that the initial demand is coming largely from the franchise's most dedicated audience, who are willing to spend extra for extra digital content.
"Actually, it is skewing more to the premium edition," Zelnick explained. "That might be a reflection of the fact that the most avid consumers are the ones who are pre-ordering now."
The baseline version costs $79.99 (£69.99), which is already $10 higher than the current industry average for blockbuster titles. For an additional $20, the $99.99 (£89.99) Ultimate Edition offers bonus digital perks, including:
- Exclusive Vehicles & Gear: '95 Grotti Cheetah, Shitzu Squalo, '67 Vapid Dominator Buggy with garage, and the Classic Car Collection.
- Weapons & Safehouses: Hawk & Little Morgan Revolver, personalized weapon variants, Jason's Safehouse Vehicles, and the PTT Youngin$ Compound.
- Cosmetics & In-Game Items: Vice City Style cosmetics, Ganado Retro Build, Goodtime Gear, one month of GTA+, and the Vintage Vice City Pack
- Exclusive Access: Five special destinations reserved exclusively for Ultimate Edition owners.
Standard Edition buyers can also upgrade to the Ultimate Edition later on if they choose.
Take-Two recently posted its quarterly financial results through June 30, recording $1.4 billion in net bookings, which is a metric capturing orders placed across its portfolio, including the first five days of GTA 6 pre-orders.
“I can say that the level of pre-orders is unprecedented and astonishing, and we’re very grateful for that,” Zelnick shared regarding the initial response.
“But they are so unprecedented that we just don’t know how it’ll translate into sales, which is a question I answered earlier. We genuinely don’t, and we just don’t believe in claiming victory before it occurs.”
With the game releasing right before Black Friday and Christmas on November 19th, Zelnick said that fans should not hold out for holiday price cuts.
"We obviously establish our pricing, and storefronts can do what they wish," he stated.
"We don't have any capability to control that. So if they reduce their price, they reduce their margin on the sale. There are situations where certain retailers will price down to drive demand for other things they will sell. I can't tell you what will happen. I will tell you we preserved our pricing on Grand Theft Auto 5 for a very long time, much longer than a standard release of an entertainment property."
Take-Two is gearing up to offer fans their first extended look at GTA 6 later this month. The showcase will debut first on Netflix before rolling out to YouTube and social media channels six hours later on August 27th.
Additionally, Zelnick addressed player concerns surrounding the absence of a physical disc at launch. While he expressed confidence that going digital-only wouldn't negatively impact sales performance, he left the door open for a traditional physical release further down the road.
