Grand Theft Auto IV: $500 million in a week

Grand Theft Auto IV set entertainment industry records last week. Since its release April 29, more than 6 million copies of the new video game have been sold.

That means it made$500 million in sales in a week. Parent company Take-Two and Rockstar games said in press releases that it was the biggest even in entertainment history and few people are arguing.

Take-Two understood the value of its property. They fended off a buyout proposal from Electronic Arts, asking stockholders to wait until the release of Grand Theft Auto IV before making any decisions about EA’s proposal.

The EA proposal offered about $2 billion for the company. Now, having grossed that much a quarter of that amount in one week and having the hottest video game title ever, Take-Two finds itself in an even better bargaining position.

Prior to the release of GTA IV, Halo 3 had been the best selling video game ever with sales at about $300 million.

So what contributed to Grand Theft Auto IV’s amazing success?

Proper planning. Take-Two released the game simultaneously on both the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 gaming consoles. This meant that it could appeal to all gamers regardless of the system they were using.

Take-Two rightly ignored the option of releasing for the Nintendo Wii even though the Wii is the best selling, so far, of the next generation systems. The Wii is carving out a niche market that offers it a larger sales base, but is not as popular with the demographic likely to love the new Grand Theft Auto IV. The Wii appeals to older gamers and women who appreciate its interactivity and the fitness promotion products that Nintendo is developing, but for the boys who love GTA the battle was always Sony versus Microsoft.

So rather than make them decide, Take-Two developed the game simultaneously for both systems.

Take-Two and Rockstar have also been more than willing to take the heat where the grand theft auto franchise is concerned. The franchise of games has been taken to task for glamorizing a life of crime, including Easter egg sex scenes with all too realistic and graphic action, and, in the latest incarnation, promoting drunk driving.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving came out within days of the game’s release demanding that it’s rating be changed to adults only or that the game be pulled entirely because one of the game features is an option for Niko, the main character, to drive drunk. The drunk driving comes with in game consequences, but apparently MADD wanted more.

In its takeover attempt, EA had claimed that it wanted to put its marketing might behind the release of GTA IV. One has to wonder then, what that could have meant to the game. With a smaller company like Take-Two handling the release, it sold 3.6 million copies the first day. Could it realistically have been any higher?

Ultimately, the true measure of the success of GTA IV will be how long it stays at the top of the charts and how soon Take Two announces a follow up game. Now that they have hit both coasts with Liberty City (New York City), Vice City (Miami) and San Andreas (Los Angeles), how about a GTA: Windy City (Chicago) or GTA: Motor City (Detroit)? The heartland is waiting.

By: Lucinda Gunnin
Published: 05/17/08