In a video game landscape dominated by big franchises and yearly sequels, publisher Take-Two stands out. The company behind the all-conquering Grand Theft Auto series is one of the few big budget names without an annual franchise.
Competitors like Activision and Ubisoft crank out new Call of Duty and Assassin's Creed games every 12 months without fail, so why wouldn't Take-Two get in on the act as well? Speaking at the MKM Partners Investor Day in New York City, CEO Strauss Zelnick gave the answer.
"The market asks us, 'Why don't you annualize your titles?' We think with the non-sports titles, we are better served to create anticipation and demand," said Zelnick. "On the one hand to rest the title and on the other hand to have the highest quality in the market, which takes time. You can't do that annually."
Zelnick prefers that Take-Two releases be seen as 'massive consumer events', rather than simply another date on the calendar. For example, the launch of Grand Theft Auto V in 2012 was a global phenomenon that made $1 billion in 24 hours.
"What we would like to do is be able to have enough hit intellectual properties in any given year, whether we have Title A or Title B, is not the issue," According to Zelnick. "We'll have a handful of really great franchises and new intellectual properties that together really have the economic impact of an annualized business without the detriments of an annualized business."
Aside from their roster of sports franchises, Take-Two has been pretty quiet for most of this current console generation. Rockstar Games only release thus far has been the remastered edition of GTA V.
Anticipation is high for whatever the company is planning next, so we'll just to wait and see what their next move is.
