Take-Two Interactive recently announced that the highly anticipated Red Dead Redemption 2 will be delayed to spring 2018 from the initial release date of fall 2017, but that did not derail a bright future ahead for the video game publisher.
For the current fiscal year, Take-Two's expected revenue is below the estimates pegged by Wall Street analysts, but not as bad as feared due to the Red Dead Redemption 2 delay.
Take-Two Bounces Back From 'Red Dead Redemption 2' Delay
Take-Two delayed the launch of Red Dead Redemption 2 due to the need for extra time to "deliver the best experience possible for our fans."
"We are very sorry for any disappointment this delay causes, but we are firm believers in delivering a game only when it is ready," publisher Rockstar Games said.
After the announcement, the price of Take-Two's shares dropped by 10 percent in extended trading.
However, after the company issued its results for the fourth quarter and its forecast for the current fiscal year, its shares increased by as high as 11 percent to $76.70 in early trading.
Take-Two expects adjusted revenue of between $1.42 billion and $1.52 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2018.
Take-Two's net revenue for its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended on March 31, increased by 51.5 percent year-over-year to $571.6 million. On an adjusted basis, the figure drops to $407.1 million, but remains on top of the average estimate of analysts of $355.4 million. Net income, meanwhile increased to $99.3 million, from $46.4 million in the corresponding period last year.
Grand Theft Auto V Still Going Strong
Take-Two's recovery from the delay announcement for Red Dead Redemption 2 is largely due to the strength of Grand Theft Auto V sales, allowing the company to become less dependent on new games and continue to earn from old ones.
Since GTA Online was released for 2013's Grand Theft Auto V, in-game sales for the online multiplayer component have increased every year. This can be attributed to the regular updates released by Rockstar Games for GTA Online, including a recent top-down camera mode that paid tribute to the roots of the massively successful franchise.
In February, Take-Two said that sales for Grand Theft Auto V reached 75 million copies. Now, just three months later, the company revealed that the open-world title has now shipped 80 million copies worldwide, with Grand Theft Auto V still found in the charts for top-selling video games in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand despite being nearly 4 years old.
Take-Two Thriving From In-Game Sales
In-game transactions generated $525 million for Take-Two for the previous fiscal year, attributed mostly to the popularity of Grand Theft Auto V and GTA Online. The company also saw a 71 percent jump for in-game spending in NBA 2K17, which is nearing 8 million units sold.
Take-Two has thrived with such revenue channels focused on in-game transactions and downloadable content. Previously, the company only made money when it released a new Grand Theft Auto game, but now, Take-Two continues to rake in revenues in between launches of major titles.
