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Grand Theft Auto V has already shipped nearly 29 million units, raising publisher Take-Two’s Q2 2014 non-GAAP revenues to a staggering $1.27 billion.
The title is one of the most financially successful in the history of entertainment, a fact demonstrated by comparison with the much lower GAAP revenue figure of $148.8 million.
For those few Develop readers shy of maths, that’s a difference of over $1.1 billion – most of which came from the first three days of GTA V sales – and it’s a similar comparison to the $288 million in non-GAAP revenue for the same period last year.
The numbers for Grand Theft Auto Online aren’t in yet, but even if conversions are low the popularity of the franchise coupled with the fact that the game was came free with every copy of GTA V means it has a decent chance to be a solid performer over time.
“During the fiscal second quarter, we delivered record Non-GAAP results driven by the unprecedented success of Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto V,” said Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO of Take-Two.
“The title received stellar reviews, shattered entertainment industry records, and has already sold-in nearly 29 million units to date. The extraordinary success of Grand Theft Auto V illustrates the positive momentum in our business and consumers’ enduring appetite for the highest-quality interactive entertainment.”
Take-Two also launched Borderlands 2: Game of the Year Edition, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, WWE 2K14, and NBA2K 2014 this quarter, the last of which will be the publisher’s first title to hit next generation consoles when they launch next month.
Though the figures for GTA V were probably the most striking feature of today’s earnings call, the more important news is what the publisher is planning to do with all that cash.
“Take-Two has an extensive development pipeline of groundbreaking new intellectual properties and exciting titles from our proven franchises, along with digitally-delivered offerings to complement our core business,” said Zelnick.
“We currently have more than ten unique titles planned for next-generation consoles, including multiple releases slated for fiscal 2015. As a result, I am confident that we will be able to achieve Non-GAAP profitability in fiscal 2015 and every year for the foreseeable future.”
Its unclear how much Take-Two is depending on GTA Online for this anticipated financial success, but for the time being it’s safe to say the company won’t be running into money issues even with 10 next-generation games in development.
