Rockstar Games
GTA 6 will be released at a delicate time for the video game industry, but expectations are so optimistic
Analysts believe it will be one of the most powerful releases in history.
If 2023 was a red-tinged year, 2024 has been wallowing in this fateful situation. In addition to studio closures, there have been thousands of layoffs in the video game industry, adverse circumstances with green shoots, according to Take-Two Interactive, the publisher of Rockstar Games. High costs and lack of growth were the reasons the companies gave to justify all these movements. The launch of the most anticipated video game of the last decade, GTA VI, fits into this muddy context.
No one has a crystal ball to predict the future, but analysts are optimistic about Grand Theft Auto VI’s market performance. According to the Financial Times, DFC Intelligence predicts that the title will earn more than $1 billion from pre-orders alone. Expectations for the 12 months after launch are even more flattering. They believe it will double the sales of GTA V, raking in $3.2 billion in its first year.
Take-Two Interactive admits that expectations are “very high”
Analysts compare it to some of the top-grossing films of 2024: “Inside Out 2′ made $1.7 billion, while “Deadpool & Wolverine” took in $1.3 billion. “I never claim victory before it occurs,” CEO Strauss Zelnick told the Financial Times. “That said, I think Rockstar Games will once again deliver something absolutely phenomenal... Certainly the anticipation is high.,” he explained.
IDG Consulting analyst Yoshio Osaki also believes that GTA VI will take the industry by storm: “We think it’s going to be one of the biggest entertainment launches in history, not just in games but for all of media. The pent-up demand is greater than anything we’ve seen before.”
According to Strauss, the trend in the video game industry has begun to shift into a new scenario: “It’s way too early to believe that this [console] generation is maturing or has reached its apex. You’re seeing more consumer demand broadly. And the [games] industry, frankly led by us, has an amazing release schedule coming in 2025 and beyond… A hit coming from one company tends to benefit the entire industry.”
GTA V has sold more than 200 million copies since its launch in 2013. Throughout these years, the online aspect has been the clear protagonist, as Rockstar Games has not marketed any expansion focused on the story. GTA VI will be released in 2025 for PS5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, although at the moment there is no specific date.
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