Take-Two CEO Rejects Sale Talk as GTA 6 Preorders Beat Expectations
Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick said the GTA 6 publisher does not need to sell itself to a larger company following Electronic Arts' $55 billion private buyout by a Saudi Public Investment Fund-led consortium, according to GameSpot. Speaking to David Rubenstein on Bloomberg, Zelnick said Take-Two's guidance is $8 billion to $8.2 billion for the fiscal year and that, past $1 billion in annual revenue, additional scale does not seem to help a company succeed, GameSpot reported, noting that Take-Two's market capitalisation is above $42 billion.
GTA 6 Preorders, NBA 2K27 and Studio Investments
On CNBC's Squawk Box, Zelnick declined to share exact GTA 6 preorder figures ahead of its November 19 launch on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, but said preorders are "vastly" exceeding Take-Two's high expectations, GameByte reported. He added that NBA 2K27 has sold more than 4 million copies since September, though sales came in slightly below expectations partly because some players may be waiting for GTA 6, while quarterly net bookings reached $1.6 billion, GameByte reported. Separately, eTeknix quoted Zelnick as saying Take-Two has 15 franchises in its PC and console business that have each sold at least five million units, and reported that the company's new sports studio, Small Axe, was founded in August by EA Sports veterans. Under Aaron McHardy's leadership, Vancouver-based Small Axe Studios is developing 2K's next AAA sports franchise, according to GamesIndustry.biz. Take-Two Interactive forecasts $3.35 billion to $3.5 billion in net bookings for the October to December 2026 launch quarter, nearly double the $1.76 billion booked in the same quarter of 2025, according to StockTitan. In 2013, Take-Two estimated that Grand Theft Auto V generated more than $1 billion in retail sales during its first three days. Take-Two's November 9 release lists GTA 6 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S only, with no PC version or PC release date announced, according to StockTitan.
Film Adaptations and Launch Pressures
On the question of a Grand Theft Auto film or television series, Zelnick said on Bloomberg that Take-Two does not rule out adaptations but remains "very, very selective," Notebookcheck reported. Meanwhile, eTeknix reported that heavy GTA 6 preload traffic has caused internet slowdowns and outages in parts of the United Kingdom ahead of the November 19 release.