GTA Company Says Only Relying On Sequels Could Spell Disaster

Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick has spoken about the importance in creating new franchises, or “new IP,” in the industry parlance. During Take-Two’s latest earnings briefing, Zelnick said nothing remains popular forever, so it’s an essential business condition to always make new things instead of relying on sequels.

“We’re different than a lot of other big companies. It’s tempting for a big company to rest on its laurels,” he said.

Take-Two would know a thing or two about having big franchises, as the company owns the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead franchises, both of which are enormously successful. Take-Two has referred to GTA and Red Dead as “permanent” franchises, meaning the company will never stop making sequels.

At the same time, though, Zelnick said Take-Two needs to create new franchises or else it runs the risk of business deterioration.

“We know that if we put out a sequel, it’s a lower-risk proposition than new intellectual property. But everything degrades. And even though most of our franchise sequels tend to do better than the prior release, and we’re really proud of that because that’s not standard for the industry,” he said.

Zelnick added: “The truth is there is this thing called decay and entropy, and it’s a feature of physics and human life and everything that exists on earth. And so ultimately, everything does decay, including hit titles. So if we’re not trying new things and making new intellectual property, we’re… to say that we’re resting on our laurels really understates it. We’re really running the risk of burning the furniture to heat the house, and that doesn’t end well.”

The executive said Take-Two will continue to try new things, even if they don’t succeed. Gearbox’s MOBA Battleborn is an example of a new Take-Two property failing to find an audience; the same can be said for Evolve. Beyond the console/PC space, Zelnick said Take-Two is trying new things on mobile and has found some success with games like Match Factory and Toon Blast.

Trying new things means that “the risk profile is higher,” and Take-Two will sometimes slip up and take a hit financially. “But in the fullness of time, it’s one of the key ways to create durable value,” he said of new IP.

Looking ahead, Take-Two has a number of new IP in the works, including the multiplayer game Project Ethos. Zelnick said on the call that he “couldn’t be more proud” of the team at 31st Union and the game itself. 31st Union held an open test for the game earlier this year, and Zelnick said the team has been “enthused” about the feedback. “So we’re off to a great start, and there’s more to come,” he said.

Another new IP coming from Take-Two is Judas, the next game from BioShock designer Ken Levine.

Take-Two’s biggest upcoming game is Grand Theft Auto VI, which launches in Fall 2025 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. The company also has Borderlands 4 coming up from Gearbox in 2025. These games won’t be released close together, which suggests Borderlands 4 is coming earlier in 2025.