Grand Theft Auto 5: Poised for the Lion’s Share of the Game Market
Grand Theft Auto 5′s publisher has gotten a reputation as delaying the release of every title it handles. The firm says the figure is more like half only. Several of its heavy hitting intellectual property titles like Red Dead Redemption, GTA 4, and even LA Noire were held back. Why? It’s all about gamers wanting “groundbreaking art,” according to the head honcho of Take Two Interactive, Strauss Zelnick.
While this might be great news for gamers who want a superb immersive experience, investors in Take Two Interactive’s stock take a different view. The stock has been under performing by 25 percent ever since Zelnick took over the helm of the publisher. Now that the company is delayed in its release of hard hitting action adventure game Max Payne 3, the company is looking at posting a loss for the fiscal year. This is sure not to thrill investors. The same investor effect is present in the company’s conspicuous absence from social games, a space dominated by Zynga. Zelnick is focused on immersive game titles. However, unlike social games which take less money to develop, immersive titles set back publishers up to $50 million each and can take several years to produce. These strategies look risky in the ever changing $16.8 billion games industry since Americans are spending less and less on games, and few analysts see much growth in the industry until 2013. Regardless of the seeming negative elements above, many analysts say that Take Two has a lot going for it. It is a highly regarded publisher who produces well-known and leading titles. It is also a sales powerhouse.
According to Macquarie Group’s Ben Schactner, Zelnick, who doesn’t think of himself as a gamer, and his management team do not get the credit they deserve for reversing Take Two’s fortunes for the better. Zelnick successfully steered the company through serious legal issues.
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