Borderlands 2 was a big deal for both Gearbox and Take-Two Interactive. The game received rave reviews, and it was expected to be a top performer for Take-Two’s bottom line. Take-Two just released its second quarter financial results, and Borderlands 2 was the company’s top performer.
Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of 2K and Rockstar Games, announced that Borderlands 2 has sold through five million units since it launched in September. The company notes that the game has seen strong digital sales no doubt backed by PC gamers wanting to support one of the rare console ports that received special attention on the PC.
“Take-Two’s second quarter revenue and earnings exceeded our outlook, driven by the breakout success of 2K’s Borderlands 2 and robust demand for our catalog and digitally delivered offerings,” said Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO of Take-Two. “Our business continues to fire on all cylinders, led by terrific early results from 2K’s NBA 2K13, and the outlook for our upcoming releases such as BioShock Infinite is stronger than ever. As a result, we continue to expect to deliver revenue growth and Non-GAAP profits in fiscal year 2013. Moreover, with Grand Theft Auto V slated for spring 2013, we are poised to generate substantial revenue and earnings growth in fiscal year 2014.”
The company announced that NBA 2K13 is the best selling entry in the sports franchise yet. It sold through 49 percent more units than NBA 2K11, the previous sales record holder, in its opening week.
XCOM: Enemy Unknown was the wild card in 2K’s lineup for the year as it was a traditional hardcore strategy title. The genre isn’t as popular as it once was, but Firaxis, developers of the Civilization franchise, made the game a critical and commercial darling. The company notes that XCOM also received strong digital sales.
As for future titles, 2K is now working with South Korean studio XLGAMES to develop an MMO based on its popular Civilization franchise. It’s unknown if the title will make it west as Take-Two said the title will be developed for the increasingly lucrative Asian markets.
As for Rockstar Games, it was reiterated that Grand Theft Auto V will be launching in the spring of next year. The game is scheduled for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, but a PC version should be in the works considering that GTAIV was released for the platform.
The company also announced its intentions to release the Rockstar Games Collection: Edition 1 on November 6. It features four of Rockstar’s most acclaimed games from this generation including Red Dead Redemption, L.A. Noire, Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City, and Midnight Club: Los Angeles Complete Edition. It will be available for both PS3 and Xbox 360.