Take-Two

Irrational Games slapped an October release date on ambitious adventure in March, but in a brief press release its publisher reveals that the game has been delayed by four months. It will now release on February 26, 2013. More >

Speaking at the MIT Business In Gaming conference in Massachusetts last week, Zelnick admitted that his own company hadn't had the best year - it is now forecasting an annual loss after delaying Rockstar's Max Payne 3 to May - but said that THQ's situation was far worse because, quite simply, its games aren't good enough. More >

Mafia II developer 2K Czech is assisting Rockstar Games in development of Grand Theft Auto V, according to reports. A source told VG247 that the studio is lending Rockstar its expertise in animation for cutscenes and general gameplay. More >

The Japanese release of Duke Nukem Forever has been delayed by three weeks to March 29. More >

Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two has reported a significant decline in profit and revenue for its third fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2011. More >

The Rockstar-developed Max Payne 3 has been delayed until May, publisher Take-Two has announced. The game was supposed to hit shelves in March, but Take-Two has confirmed that it will now be released for Xbox 360 and PS3 on May 15 in North America and May 18 in other territories. The PC version will be released on May 29 in North America, and June 1 elsewhere. More >

Strauss Zelnick, CEO of publisher Take-Two, has questioned Zynga's business model, saying the social gaming titan's proposed IPO has yet to go through because of its "sketchy metrics." Speaking at the Reuters Media Summit yesterday, Zelnick said: "Zynga is a direct marketing company, 97 per cent of [whose customers] don't pay them anything, three per cent who do. They churn quite quickly and they get new customers. That is their model." More >

Take-Two was hit with a loss of $47.37 million (£29.5 million) in the three months to September 30, as sales more than halved year on year. Net revenue fell 56.3 per cent to $107 million, which the publisher pinned on a quiet quarter for new releases compared to last year, when Mafia II and Civilization V, and Red Dead Redemption's long sales tail, boosted revenues. More >

Yesterday's announcement of Grand Theft Auto had a predictable effect on Take-Two's share price, with its US stock rising six per cent. The publisher's shares rose as high as $15.71 during the day, settling at $15.22 at the close of trading and rising again to $15.36 in afterhours trading. More >

The suit, brought by one Aaron Martinez, accuses Take-Two subsidiary Visual Concepts of failing to pay testers for all the hours they worked, or provide the required rest and meal breaks. Take-Two denies the allegations, but as Martinez is seeking class-action status for his suit, the publisher has written to former employees to inform them they may be contacted by the plaintiff's legal team.

In an earnings call following the publication of its latest financial results, CEO Strauss Zelnick said Take-Two would be "diversifying our approach" to reduce its dependence on the Grand Theft Auto series. "We're focused on building new franchises," he said. "For example, you can look at what Red Dead Redemption did for us in our last fiscal year." While admitting the publisher is keeping an eye on "emerging online mobile platforms," Zelnick said investors should not expect Take-Two to join the rush to social games. "The business Zynga's in has only been around for about four years," he said. "Playing Zynga titles doesn't scratch the same itch as playing Grand Theft Auto - that's a dynamic that doesn't change in the videogame business."

Take-Two has revealed that Duke Nukem Forever has become a profitable title for the company. In a conference call following the announcement of losses incurred during the publisher’s first fiscal quarter ended June 30, CEO Strauss Zelnick said the game – which was in development for over 14 years – achieved a level of commercial success despite being panned by critics. "Despite its disappointing reviews, Duke Nukem Forever was profitable for Take-Two,” he said, according to Gamasutra. Take-Two said following the game’s release that it is committed to growing the Duke Nukem franchise. That strategy will begin with the release of downloadable content packs for DNF, but could extend to non-videogame products based on the IP.

In a press release, Take-Two has confirmed that a sequel to 2009's Borderlands is under development at Gearbox Software. Borderlands 2 will be released during the next fiscal year which begins on April 1, 2012, for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

The US firm whose legal action against mobile developers prompted the intervention of Apple has widened the scope of its lawsuit over infringement of patents covering in-app purchasing. While one developer - Vietnamese studio Wulven Games - has been dropped from the lawsuit, five more, far-higher profile companies have been added. Rovio is named for Angry Birds, Electronic Arts for The Sims 3, Atari for Atari's Greatest Hits, Square Enix for Big Hit Baseball, and Take-Two for NHL 2K11. Lodsys is clearly not intimidated by big companies: it is also suing the likes of HP, Adidas and The New York Times.