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Take-Two registers '2K Golf Links' domains
EA's Tiger Woods series may have some competition. It would appear Take-Two is preparing to tee off with a golf series of its own, Internet sleuth supererogatory discovered. A pair of Take-Two domain registrations for "Links2KGolf.com" and "2KGolfLinks.com" were recently made through a third-party company called Network Solutions. Now Take-Two could be making a brand-new series or the publisher may have acquired the rights to the Links series from Microsoft – supererogatory thinks it's the latter. We've followed up with Take-Two and Microsoft for clarification and will update this post accordingly.
Has Blizzard left an opening for the next generation of WoW killers?
As Blizzard has faltered with its recent loss of WoW subscribers and the reset of its yet to be announced next MMO, other developers, hungry to make inroads in the MMO market, have looked on this as an opportunity. So, after countless games have tried to claim the title, are we really about to see a WoW killer come to market? Stephan Frost, Game Design Producer at NCsoft's Carbine Studios, thinks that it gives his game Wildstar a better chance to succeed. "We're coming out at a time when WoW is losing subscribers and we can fill the void for people who want an MMO that's deep, hardcore but also accessible to people." In the meanwhile, Take-Two Interactive has taken the opposing angle, saying that no one -- not even Blizzard -- can succeed because the North American market is a poor one for MMOs. Analysts agree that Blizzard's delay can only be an opportunity for others, though with WoW's current patch frenzy, it's clear that Blizzard isn't planning on relinquishing its title as top MMO any time soon. So is scifi MMO Wildstar going to be the next big thing? Or will Take-Two's Asian-market MMOs be a smashing success? Only time will tell.
MMOs don't work in the US says Take-Two Interactive
At the Cowen and Company Technology, Media and Telecom Conference this week, Take-Two Interactive's chairman Strauss Zelnick told crowds that MMOs just don't work in North America. "How many MMOs have been successful in the US?" Strauss mused. "Two: World of Warcraft and EverQuest." This is why Take-Two is focusing on Asian markets for its own massively multiplayer games and why, Zelnick suggested (without mentioning anyone by name), Blizzard had to reboot development of their own Project Titan. However, while WoW's numbers have had a much-ballyhooed decline, its current 8.3 million subscribers is nothing to sneeze at. But does America's poor track record with MMOs mean Titan is doomed before it's even managed to get a release date? Zelnick and Take-Two seem fairly certain MMOs don't have a future, but we intend to wait and see.
Take-Two CEO: MMOs don't work in the US
The good news: Take-Two Interactive chairman and CEO Strauss Zelnick says that the company that brought you BioShock, Borderlands, Red Dead Redemption, and the GTA series is "actively investing in online and MMOs." The bad news: He adds, "We're just not doing it in the U.S." Speaking at the Cowen and Company Technology, Media and Telecom Conference on Thursday, Zelnick reinforces what he believes many studios are learning the hard way, "MMOs don't work here. A couple of our competitors have found out that through very, very expensive lessons. One of our competitors just recently announced they're restarting an MMO project." Take-Two is, instead, aiming at the Asian MMO market through partnerships with industry leaders such as Tencent and Nexon. This is where the company hopes to be successful in the genre, as Zelnick cites "10 to 20" MMOs are successful in that market. [Thanks to Avaloner81 for the tip!]
Grand Theft Auto 5 collector's editions detailed, priced
Grand Theft Auto 5 will try to beat a couple extra bucks out of you with its "special edition" and "collector's edition," which were announced for pre-order this morning by Rockstar Games. The $79.99 special edition includes the game, artbook, blueprint map, in-game special ability boost for the playable characters, stunt plane trials, bonus outfits and additional weapons. The $149.99 collector's edition includes everything already listed in the special edition, with the addition of security deposit bag and logo key, cap, classic characters for GTA online and "unique vehicles and garage property." All pre-orders of the game will receive the Atomic Blimp in-game vehicle. Yes, a blimp. Grand Theft Auto 5 will deliver its goodyear goodies on September 17.
Take-Two year-on-year revenue up, digital sales on the rise
Take-Two announced its financial results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2013, revealing that the company took in $1.214 billion in sales last year, up from $825.8 million for the fiscal year 2012. Take-Two notes that BioShock Infinite met with "significantly" higher sales than any previous BioShock release, shipping over 3.7 million units to date. The company reports a net loss of $31.2 million over the past fiscal year, but projects between $1.75 to $1.85 billion in revenue for the current fiscal year (ending in March, 2014), spurred by upcoming releases like Grand Theft Auto V and WWE 2K14. The report notes year-over-year improvements in both revenue and net losses, bolstered by big sellers like Borderlands 2, NBA 2K13, and XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Catalog sales for older releases like Grand Theft Auto IV and Red Dead Redemption also saw strong performances, as Take Two noted a 192 percent year-over-year rise in revenue from digitally delivered software.
WWE 2K14 throws down at retailers on October 29
WWE 2K14 is scheduled to launch on October 29 for Xbox 360 and PS3, Take-Two Interactive confirmed in its fiscal year 2013 financial report. Take-Two snagged the rights to the WWE franchise in February, through a deal that went down before THQ's public bankruptcy auction in January. The deal gives Take-Two exclusive rights to publish WWE games "across all major platforms and distribution channels." WWE 2K14 is in production from series developer Yukes, based in Japan, and 2K Sports.
Grand Theft Auto 5 adds 12 new screens for detail extraction
Ride, drive, fly, scuba, run, pace and observe the latest batch of Grand Theft Auto 5 screens.
Grand Theft Auto 5 trailer; no fancy headline needed
The latest event trailers for Grand Theft Auto 5 are available now on the Rockstar site. We say "event" because the internet stops for a good amount of time when these things get posted. Grand Theft Auto 5 drives onto Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on September 17.We'll have the videos posted here as soon as we can. The Rockstar site currently has a waiting period of 55 minutes to even watch the clips.Update: Okay, here are all the videos in one place. Michael is above, Franklin and Trevor are after the break.
2K Games won't attend E3, Take-Two to have meeting rooms
Take-Two Interactive, parent company of 2K Games and Rockstar Games, has clarified its E3 status to Joystiq. Take-Two plans to have meeting rooms at the show, but 2K's presence isn't planned. 2K Games announced earlier this week that it would not have a booth on the show floor at E3. That didn't necessarily mean the company wouldn't participate at all, since we've seen publishers in the past not have a booth, but hold meetings in the upstairs concourse.A representative for the Entertainment Software Association, which organizes the annual conference, tells us, "We can confirm that Take-Two Interactive Software is participating in E3 2013.""We are going to have a meeting room in the upper concourse level and we'll be doing some business meetings as we usually do," a Take-Two spokesperson tells Joystiq. "2K is not participating."As for Rockstar, the rebellious child of Take-Two, we're still waiting to hear official word if they plan to participate. Rockstar does not typically attend E3 and hasn't made any announcements.2K's scheduled projects for this year include The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, Civilization V: Brave New World, XCOM: Enemy Unknown for iOS, more Borderlands 2 content, WWE 2K14 and NBA 2K14.
WWE 2K14 taps The Rock for cover spot
Part-time draw The Rock will grace the cover of the latest WWE game, WWE 2K14. Casey Collins, Executive Vice President of Consumer Products, announced the news (via Pasta Padre) prior to this past weekend's Wrestlemania 29 event, where The Rock lost his championship belt against John Cena. Don't worry, we're sure he'll get it back in time to promote the game later this year.The WWE license was held by THQ for years, up until the company's collapse late last year. THQ then proceeded to auction off its assets, with Take-Two securing the WWE license and placing it under its 2K Sports banner. WWE 2K14 is due this fall.Update: We followed up with 2K Sports to confirm what this game is actually called. The original announcement by Take-Two called it "WWE '14," but Joystiq has confirmed with 2K Sports that the game will indeed be called WWE 2K14. All references to the game in this post have been updated with the correct title.
Grand Theft Auto 5 sticks with tried-and-true box art
After some recent speculation surrounding a mural unveiling, Rockstar revealed the official box art for Grand Theft Auto 5 this morning. As you can see in full below the break, it does not stray far from the style introduced during the series' PlayStation 2 days.The art unsurprisingly features the three main protagonists of the game, with Franklin holding the handgun at the bottom, Trevor holding the slightly larger weapon, and Michael taking to the water. Also typical to GTA's style, in the hands of the woman on the left we can see a rather familiar-looking device...Grand Theft Auto 5 rides onto Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on September 17.
BioShock Infinite soundtrack has a hymn sung by its two leads
Irrational Games has dropped the details on the full BioShock Infinite soundtrack, which will be included in both the Premium and Songbird editions of the game. Series composer Garry Schyman returns to score the game. His work is also joined by some appropriate period music, including the Irish jig "Saddle the Pony," and the Scott Joplin ragtime tune, "Solace."The soundtrack also features the hymn "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," including a version sung by Troy Baker and Courtnee Draper, who play Booker Dewitt and Elizabeth in BioShock Infinite (as seen in the video above).
Take-Two officially takes over WWE license, WWE 2K14 coming in fall
We knew this was coming last week, but now it's official: Take-Two is now the holder of the WWE license. The first game to come from the new WWE publisher is due this fall, titled WWE '14 – in line with 2K Sports' branding of sports games. [Update: The original ESPN source cited a name change, but Take-Two's press release confirms the new game will be called WWE '14.] Take-Two struck a five-year deal with WWE, WWE executive vice president of consumer products Casey Collins confirmed to ESPN. The previous WWE license holder was THQ, who has been pumping out wrasslin' games since 1999. THQ has since become no more, forced to sell off all its assets to the highest bidder – but before that silent auction, THQ and WWE got together to hold private bidding for the license. According to Collins, Take-Two was the right fit, a publisher he sees as "a leader going forward on these next-gen systems." Not only that, but Take-Two's success with the NBA 2K series also spurred interest, Collins said. "The work they do, and the quality of the games they put out and how they've been able to grow their franchise with not only the simulation aspect of the game, but also the entertainment aspect, we thought they'd be a perfect partner." WWE '14 will launch this fall, a joint collaboration between 2K Sports studio Visual Concepts and longtime WWE series developer Yukes, located in Japan. As part of this five-year deal, Take-Two has also hired on some designers from THQ to work with Visual Concepts. "What we're going to do moving forward is meld Yukes with the team at Visual Concepts, so we can have the best of both worlds," Collins said. "Having Yukes' experience and then getting the Visual Concepts guys on board with them, we think this is going to be a dynamic duo." Collins confirmed that folks from THQ's "Fight Team" were being hired at Take-Two to help Visual Concepts with the transition. "The THQ Fight Team is also being brought over, and they'll report directly to Visual Concepts. Their experience in the marketing, their experience in the development, their experience with our franchise for years ... we thought that it was very valuable to keep that continuity." [Note: Image taken from WWE '13, but you probably knew that because it says WWE '13 right on the image.
NBA 2K13 and MLB 2K13 bundle puts sports in your sports
2K Sports announced a special NBA 2K13 and MLB 2K13 bundle today for Xbox 360 and PS3, which will retail for $79.99 when MLB 2K13 launches on March 5. The bundle saves players a whopping $20, as a new copy of NBA 2K13 can be picked up on Amazon for $39.99.2K Sports bundled the two series together last year as well, packaging NBA 2K12 and MLB 2K12 up for $69.99. One of the differences this year revolved around the uncertainty of MLB 2K13 even existing until it was announced in January, as 2K Sports' licensing agreement with MLB was slated to expire last year. Click past the break to check out the 2K13 bundle cover, which features cover athletes David Price and Kevin Durant.
Borderlands 2 nears 6 million shipped, on course to be 2K's best seller
Borderlands 2 is sneaking up on the 6 million mark for units shipped, and well on the way to exploding 2K Games' sales records. Speaking in yesterday's financials call, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said the rambunctious shooter was the company's biggest earner in terms of digital sales across the fiscal year."Building on its extraordinary launch in September, Borderlands 2 continues to expand its audience and remains on pace to become the highest-selling title in 2K's history," said Zelnick. "It has also been the largest contributor to our digitally delivered revenue this year, driven both by strong sales of full game downloads, and high attach rates for the title's add-on content, especially the Borderlands 2 Season Pass."The Gearbox-developed sequel had shipped over 5 million back in October 2012. While shipments aren't the same as sales, it's worth noting the original Borderlands sold 4.5 million copies as of August 2011.
Take-Two Interactive bags 405% year-over-year profit increase during Q3 2013
Take-Two Interactive has released its financial report for the three month period ending on December 31, 2012, or "Q3 2013" in technical terms. The company raked in net revenue (read: gross income) of $415.7 million during that period; a 75.9 percent increase over the $236.3 million it earned in Q3 of fiscal 2012.Net income (read: profit) was also up year-over-year, $71.3 million during Q3 2013 versus $14.1 million in 2012, which is an astonishing 405.9 percent increase. Meanwhile, Take-Two's nine month year-to-date figures are reporting a loss of $51.9 million, down from the $41.9 million loss reported at this same time in fiscal 2012.Revenues accrued from digital sales were up 244 percent year-over-year, an increase that Take-Two attributes to Borderlands, Borderlands 2, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, NBA 2k13, the Grand Theft Auto series and all of those games' respective DLC.
XCOM, the shooter, still alive and set for FY 2014 launch
XCOM, the shooter from 2K Marin, is still a part of Take-Two's future launch plans, scheduled for fiscal year 2014. Take-Two's fiscal 2014 runs from April 1, 2013, to March 31, 2014. This is the same release window XCOM received in May 2012, which is also the last time we heard any significant news about the game."2K Marin continues to make progress on XCOM," Take-Two said today during a financial call.XCOM has been delayed twice, from an initial launch date of March 6, 2012, and now past its second window in FY 2013. Developer Firaxis launched XCOM: Enemy Unknown, the strategy game, last year also under 2K Games, and we thought it was quite a boon to the franchise, even without any first-person alien-gunning.
NBA 2K13 sets franchise records, ships 4.5 million copies
The Bieber-licious NBA 2K13 has sold-in (i.e. "shipped") 4.5 million units to date, publisher Take-Two announced today as part of its third quarter financials.2K Sports previously noted NBA 2K13 sold 49 percent more worldwide during its first-week sales than previous record holder NBA 2K11. The franchise has now shipped over 15 million units since NBA 2K11.Part of the series' success has been the lack of competition from Electronic Arts. Last year's NBA Live 13 was canceled, after already being downgraded to a digitally distributed product. It was the third consecutive year EA dropped the ball and didn't show up to compete with a basketball game.
Grand Theft Auto 5 launches Sept. 17
Grand Theft Auto 5 will hijack Xbox 360 and PS3 retail on September 17, 2013. Publisher Rockstar Games says the game has been moved from its originally projected release window of spring in order to "allow additional development time.""We are very excited for people to learn more about the game in the coming months," said Rockstar Games founder Sam Houser.Rockstar Games parent company Take-Two Interactive and its investors are likely more eager for GTA 5 to launch than gamers, since the game's release is projected to deliver $600 million in revenues.
