According to some market analysts, video game prices may increase again in 2026, especially when it comes to microtransactions, rather than the prices of full games.
Piers Harding-Rolls, an analyst at Ampere Analysis, believes that the unit prices of full games are likely to remain stable throughout 2026. The standard price of $70 is expected to stay in place next year.
However, the prices that are most likely to increase are those related to microtransactions, which could see various upward adjustments in the coming year.
Why Developers Might Focus on Microtransactions
The main reason behind this trend is that developers and publishers need to increase their profits from sales. However, raising the standard prices of full games further could be seen very negatively by players and might lead to a drop in sales.
On the other hand, Nintendo has already introduced the $80 standard price for physical games, setting a significant precedent. This move could push other companies to adopt similar pricing strategies in the future.
Where there seems to be more flexibility and less backlash is in microtransactions, or in-app purchases. These already represent an important revenue source in the gaming market and could become even more central moving forward.
“As [in-app purchases] are where most spending is generated across the entire games market, there could be further inflation in this part of the monetisation mix,” explained Harding-Rolls (thanks TweakTown).
“Generally, I think it’s easier to alter the value of an IAP bundle and a price increase on a cheap bundle is easier to implement without undermining gamer sentiment,” he concluded.
