‘Wow, that’s surprising,’ said no one
It’s no secret that theGrand Theft Autofranchise makes money. Each game in Rockstar’s flagship series is a massive critical success, adorned with rave reviews by nearly every gaming outlet, while remaining easily accessible and fun for just about anyone. Massive sales are a given, but just how well do these games sell? Well,Grand Theft Auto V, the latest entry, is now the best-selling game of all time in the United States.
In anews release from Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar’s parent company revealed thatGrand Theft Auto Vhas moved 85 million units, which, in terms of both revenue and units sold, makes it the US’s best-selling game ever. The release consistently ranks bothGrand Theft Auto OnlineandGrand Theft Auto Vas big sources of revenue in 2017, right behindNBA 2K18andNBA 2K17.DespiteGrand Theft Auto Vinitially hitting the market over four years ago, it still moves more units than more recent titles likeXCOM 2.
This is big news, but certainly not unexpected.Grand Theft Autohas always been a cash cow, and seeing it become the best-selling game in the States isn’t all that surprising. Still, it’s fascinating to witness the staying power of such a huge game on the market.
Grand Theft Auto Onlinehas apparently had its most profitable quarter as well, likely due to “recurrent consumer spending” which saw an 84% increase for Take-Two year-over-year. Recurrent consumer spending is essentially microtransactions, and with the release of the infamousNBA 2K18this year now standing alongsideGrand Theft Auto Online, which has madeabsurd amounts of money from microtransactions, you can begin to understand why Take-Two wants to embed microtransactions intoall future releases.
Grand Theft Auto Vmay be the US’s best-selling game of all time, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that title is eventually handed off toRed Dead Redemption 2or the next entry in theGTAseries. Especially if Take-Two keeps re-releasing its titles as much as it did forGrand Theft Auto V.
