Mafia II, Red Dead Redemption delayed as Take-Two beats estimates

Publisher posts better-than-expected $10.1 million quarterly loss on $229.7 million revs, but fiscal-year guidance sinks on delays; second GTAIV DLC dated for fall; BioShock 2 due Nov. 3.

It's not entirely fair to compare Take-Two's second fiscal quarter ended April 30, 2009, to the same three-month period of time this year. After all, during that window, the publisher shipped Grand Theft Auto IV for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation3, a $310 million event that secured a Guinness World Record for the Highest Grossing Video Game in 24 Hours and the Highest Revenue Generated by an Entertainment Product in 24 Hours.

Easy there, Quick Draw McGraw. You'll have to wait until November...at the earliest.

As such, it is no surprise that Take-Two saw a significant year-over-year dip in second-quarter revenues, which fell to $229.7 million from $539.8 million during the year-ago period. Nevertheless, the company's sales during the period beat previous expectations of $200 to $220 million.

As part of its earnings report released today, the publisher also said that net losses for the quarter stood at $10.1 million, down from a $98.2 million profit a year ago. Today's report increases the publisher's total losses for the first half of fiscal 2009 to $60.5 million on revenues of $486.5 million.

Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned, which launched exclusively for the Xbox 360 in February, led sales for the publisher during the period. Other top performers included Major League Baseball 2K9, Grand Theft Auto IV, and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Take-Two did not break out sales figures for any of the aforementioned games, the latter of which has seen heavy discounting at retail due to a less-than-fanatical commercial reception.

Take-Two also said today that it would be lowering its full-year fiscal guidance to between $1.05 billion and $1.15 billion from between $1.1 billion and $1.25 billion, thanks to two costly game delays. 2K Czech's Mafia II and Rockstar San Diego's Red Dead Redemption are now expected to ship during the first half of the 2010 calendar year. Both games were bumped in order to "allow additional development time for the titles and to maximize their full potential in terms of the quality of the player experience and market performance."

One product that isn't expected to negatively impact the publisher's current-year financials is Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony, the second Xbox 360-exclusive downloadable chapter for Rockstar Games' best-selling franchise. Take-Two today confirmed that the second add-on will be available through Xbox Live during its August 1 to October 31 quarter. The DLC will be available for 1,600 Microsoft points ($20).

Alongside that release, Rockstar will ship Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City, an Xbox 360-exclusive stand-alone retail product that combines the first two GTAIV add-on chapters onto one disc for $39.99.

Take-Two is holding its quarterly conference call with investors this afternoon. This story will be updated with details as appropriate.

[UPDATE] Highlights from the conference call are listed below:

--Take-Two chief financial officer Lainie Goldstein confirmed that BioShock 2 will ship in North America on November 3, with the European rollout expected a few days earlier on October 30.

--Take-Two CEO Ben Feder confirmed that 2K Sports' NBA 2K10 will ship for the Wii this year, having skipped the platform during the 2K9 season.

--Feder also noted that 2K Sports last year passed its MLB 2K baseball franchise to Visual Concepts, the same studio behind its well-regarded NBA 2K basketball series. MLB 2K9 received a withering critical reception after its launch across multiple platforms in March.

79 Comments

  • ps3_hero

    Posted Sep 2, 2009 5:07 am PT

    sweet i love western shooters like call of juarez and i like gta4 these combined will make me a very happy ps3 gamer!!!!!!!!!!! cnt wait.!!!!!!!!

  • julle23

    Posted Aug 30, 2009 9:47 am PT

    they are very aware that the game will be delayed but they do it so u want more, so when the release finally come more ppl will ahve bought it

  • dg3215

    Posted Aug 3, 2009 10:03 am PT

    I dont mind if a game is delayed for the purpose of making sure there are not any glitches. But to make revenue higher for a quarter to compair year-over-year earnings is cr@p and should be illegal.

  • paystation

    Posted Jul 20, 2009 7:58 am PT

    i am so glad that this is coming out. i loved the first one. i have always wanted a open world westen game. i hope it is online. then i will get it for def

  • moo223

    Posted Jun 20, 2009 1:38 am PT

    damn it tired of delays. seems to always happen to games im looking forward to, GTA 4, Batman, and now mafia. for once i would like to see a date that actually sticks for once. or don't tell us a date

  • 8smokes

    Posted Jun 13, 2009 8:23 pm PT

    Damn, I was really looking foward to Mafia 2 this holiday...

  • pspowerguy123

    Posted May 31, 2009 12:00 am PT

    OMFG!! All i was waiting for was a 3rd person western game on my PS3! I loved red dead and gun on PS2! Screw damnarion ! its fantasy! I waited to buy my PS3 this year so I could play REDEMPTION!! Now i gotta play KZ2 and LBP till next year? WTF!!! Ghostbusters better be good or I am gonna be F**KIN PISSED B**CHES!!!!

  • Boromir028

    Posted May 30, 2009 2:25 pm PT

    All this "XBox 360-exclusive" crap makes me want to fricking puke.

  • Gtgamer13fresh

    Posted May 29, 2009 7:51 pm PT

    aug_ga_man5-
    "LOL based off the videos Gamespot showed us of the multiplayer for Red Dead Redemption, it needed to be delayed."

    iwantasong-
    "aug_ga_man5 .... the multiplayer vids you are thinking of aren't Red Dead Redemption, those were Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood. There are no gameplay vids for Red Dead Redemption."

    ROFL. And Call of Juarez is coming out in a month. Just lol.

  • n_8_z

    Posted May 28, 2009 9:43 am PT

    DAMN!!!...Oh well..more time for the developers to "maximize their full potential" in MAFIA 2, and RDR!!!

  • ImsoniacShadow

    Posted May 28, 2009 9:03 am PT

    NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
    WHY U DID THAT ROCKSTAR
    I WAS THIS WEEK ON GAMESTOP AND I ASKED RED DEAD REDEMPTION´S RELEASE DATE AND THEY SAID SEPTEMBER 2!!!
    U DID THE SAME THING WITH GTA 4!!!
    THE ONLY GOOD THING IS THAT U WILL DO SOME WORK WITH THE GAME
    IT COULD GET BETTER
    BUT DAMN
    WE HAVE TO WAIT¿!?!

  • Revan_911

    Posted May 28, 2009 4:31 am PT

    What's wrong with Dreamfall? And if GTA IV didn't sell good for PC it was nobody's fault but Rocktars. I mean we all know what they did there. And you are right not to expect much from Mafia. It's probably being super optimized for the consoles atm so we will need quad cores to get decent fps.

  • Humorguy_basic

    Posted May 28, 2009 2:14 am PT

    @ james007_14, you're probably right that they meant Chinatown Wars was the poor seller, but the PC version of GTA IV was still listed in the 'secondary list' where sales numbers were not given out, so it still wasn't good.

    I must admit, I am surprised at the optimism in this thread, Imean other than Hl1 then HL2, what good follow-ups have we seen? Especially on PC? Who's to say Mafia II, if it comes out on PC, wont be another Deus Ex 2 or TLJ: Dreamfall?! There haven't been that many successful follow-ups, and when you consider what the PC market was when Mafia came out and what it's like now, I HOPE Mafia II will be a great follow-up, but I am not optimistic that's for sure! As a PC gamer, of course, I am reminding myself that Mafia was written for PC and came out for PC. This follow up is a'multi-format' release. How that changes the game who knows?! Dumbed down? More action based? Gamepad style gaming? I am just going to wait and see.

  • AOldDog

    Posted May 28, 2009 1:09 am PT

    I was hoping that i could get my hands on both Red Dead Redemption and Mafia 2 , this year. Especially Mafia2 ! I cant wait till next year ..... ! @#$@#$%@#$^%^&& !!!

  • wars45

    Posted May 28, 2009 12:05 am PT

    in nov it wont sell when its up with call 4 2 and bio shock 2 and uncharted 2 cant see it doing well

  • Lothos_Delion

    Posted May 27, 2009 11:57 pm PT

    Man loosing Mafia 2 hurts me worse than anything I've been looking forward too. Im sure its sales alone would be enough to really make their books shine. But I think they want next years first quarter to sparkle thus the bump which stinks.

  • iwantasong

    Posted May 27, 2009 7:31 pm PT

    aug_ga_man5 .... the multiplayer vids you are thinking of aren't Red Dead Redemption, those were Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood. There are no gameplay vids for Red Dead Redemption.

  • zunit88

    Posted May 27, 2009 4:00 pm PT

    yea Xboxers stick to those exlusive DLCs that am not interested in anyway...coz am stickin to other better exlusives

  • Mr_Fujiv1

    Posted May 27, 2009 12:23 pm PT

    what the hell! :[ so whens mafia 2 actually coming out then. i have been waiting ages now! i thought it was coming out oct 8th

  • snake3rules

    Posted May 27, 2009 10:58 am PT

    Who gives about MP in a gta-style western ... Or are you the one person still playing GTAIV MP? Every game doesnt need MP, and games liek this are worse for it, cause now I have to wait indefinitely so they can refine a feature that shouldnt be there to begin with... also its likely somebody realized how good this essentially cast off and left-for-dead game will be and decided to throw more time and money at it, but I wish if that were the case they hadnt teased it with previews for the last three months in magazines, only to delay it for the foreseeable future.

  • aug_ga_man5

    Posted May 27, 2009 10:29 am PT

    LOL based off the videos Gamespot showed us of the multiplayer for Red Dead Redemption, it needed to be delayed.

  • metalkid9

    Posted May 27, 2009 10:02 am PT

    Just in case no one noticed but 2k's first half of fiscal year starts from Nov.1 to Apr. 30. so there is a 1/3 of a chance that they will release one game this year. And that's for only one game, having two games increases the possibility even more that they will at least release one this year. And I don't see why they wouldn't release one before Christmas time since it would be to their own benefit.

  • FidelSarcastro

    Posted May 27, 2009 9:18 am PT

    Well that sure stinks, I was really hoping to get my hands on Red Dead Redemption and Mafia II sooner than later. Oh well if that extra time is well used and the game benefits from it then I can wait.

  • romeo615

    Posted May 27, 2009 9:10 am PT

    NO THEY WILL NEVER GET MY MONEY AGAIN...PEOPLE LIKE U LET THESE CO.s DO THIS TYPE OF SH IT...IF YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO SAY I WONT BE A SUCKER AND BUY YOUR PRODUCT...

    WHY CAN ALL THESE CRAPPY FPS COME OUT ON TIME?
    SO IM REALLY HURT CAUSE I PUT MY LOVE INTO RS. I'LL STAND IN THE COLD WAITING TO BUY MY COPY AND THE BEST YOU HAVE FOR ME AS A LOYAL FAN IS YOU'LL PUSH THE GAME BACK SO BIO CRAP CAN SELL OR CAUSE COME Q1 YOU (TAKETWO) HAVE NO OTHER GOOD GAMES TO SELL SO YOU WANNA MILK GTA ON MY TIME? FU CK U I'LL STEAL YOUR SH IT AND SHOW OTHER PEOPLE HOW TO...IM GONNA START MODDING XBOXES AND SELLING ANY TAKETWO GAME FOR 5 BUCKS...SURE I WONT REALLY HURT THEM..BUT I WILL FEEL BETTER KNOWING WHILE IM STUCK WITH NO GAMES TO PLAY FOR XMAS ALL THE FPS BOYS WILL BE LIVING IT UP WITH 4-5 GAMES TO PICK FROM AND US LOYAL FANS GET THE SHAFT CAUSE YOU WANTED NICE EARNINGS FOR Q1....

    PEOPLE NEED TO STAND UP AND BOY COTT MORE SH IT THATS WHY NOW DAYS YOU GOT SO MANY SUB PAR GAMES FOR 65 CAUSE PEOPLE WONT SAY HEYYYY YOU CANT GIVE ME A CRAPPY GAME THEY JUST TAKE IT...IM TIRED OF TAKING WHAT EVER THESE GAME CO.s THROW AT ME..AND IM GONNA DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT IN MY OWN WAY....ANY AND EVERY 1 I KNOW WILL HAVE A MODDED XBOX BY THE TIME T2 STARTS TO DROP GAMES THIS YEAR....I SWEAR ON MY LIFE

  • hollowfaith

    Posted May 27, 2009 9:10 am PT

    "Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned, which launched exclusively for the Xbox 360 in February, led sales for the publisher during the period." Wow and think how much more they would have made if they didn't do just Xbox360 Exclusive DLC, instead of leaving the PC and PS3 users out in the cold like abandoned step children..

  • chinner88

    Posted May 27, 2009 8:41 am PT

    romeo615, i agree that it sucks these games have been delayed red dead redemption and mafia II were the games i most wanted this year, by far. However by only d/l games and showing other people to d/l what do you think that'll achieve. They're not guna make games faster because people aren't buying them. THEY NEED THE MONEY TO MAKE THEM. if everyone were to stop buying games then THERE WOULD BE NO GAMES. think about before being an aggressive brat about it man. You would rather the game unfinished>!!?? that would be fun a game without an ending and half graphical quality. Personally id rather wait and it be awesome than just get the game early and have them piece it together with updates. Thank God your not in marketing for the gaming industry, your ideas are all flawed and your acting like a spoilt kid. grow up and be patient, it'll be worth the wait.

  • romeo615

    Posted May 27, 2009 7:48 am PT

    the 1 game i was looking for and its pushed back...im so done with take two and rockstar....all these crappy fps games come out and the good open world games always get pushed back....

    well they lost my 60 bucks...now i will just d/l the game free on my haxed xbox...from now on im only gonna d/l games...never buy again...Rockstar if ur smart u'll get far away from taketwo ur the only thing saving em and now ur delaying games and after gta 4 flop people are losing trust and love for you...

    so now i will make it my point to only d/l ur games and show as many people on youtube and other sites how to d/l ur games for free.... u fu cking suck pushing the game back...why the fu ck u even get me all hyped when u know r gonna make me wait till mid 2010 to play the game...i'll lose my lust by then..stupid fu ckersssssss arggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg
    blew my fu cking day with this s hit...i hate you RS...

    id rather get the game unfinished and u update it through xbl instead of another 6 months...noikbgfsihgrshogh;brn3dobodvve1ugdigbjddsii

    i only wanted 1 game this year and thanks for nothing i can really put my xbox in the closet cause i dont find any games coming out worth playing...

  • boomdodger72

    Posted May 27, 2009 7:41 am PT

    Releasing Bioshock 2 a week before Modern Warfare 2, either the best or worst marketing strategy, we will see

  • SephireX

    Posted May 27, 2009 7:22 am PT

    You see if that was EA, like hell would they have delayed those games but have released them even prior to the old release date. Look at Godfather 2 for example. It got slaughtered critically and rightly so. Say what you want about Take-two but they give their developers the time needed to make a proper game. Now I will say that EA are doing a good job with Bioware and Dead Space was a great game but hell, Godfather 2 is unforgivable!

  • james007_14

    Posted May 27, 2009 7:10 am PT

    @Humorguy_basic
    The quote, "the latter of which has seen heavy discounting at retail due to a less-than-fanatical commercial reception" was meant for GTA: Chinatown Wars and not for Grand Theft Auto IV on the PC.

  • Black_Kill3r

    Posted May 27, 2009 6:36 am PT

    wow , Q1 2010 is going to be EPIC

  • Humorguy_basic

    Posted May 27, 2009 4:54 am PT

    To quote: "Other top performers included Major League Baseball 2K9, Grand Theft Auto IV, and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Take-Two did not break out sales figures for any of the aforementioned games, the latter of which has seen heavy discounting at retail due to a less-than-fanatical commercial reception."

    The 'other' Grand Theft Auto IV mentioned in this list, that came out after the 360 and PS3 versions, can only be the PC version. It is the only PC title mentioned in the above article. It is included in a list, where the quote is: 'less-than-fanatical commercial reception.' This statement leads me to believe that we will not see GTA V on PC. (No, I am not a 'console fan', I am a 20+ year PC gamer!). So, if you are a PC gamer with a pirate copy of GTA IV, please buy it. You're killing PC gaming by putting even a PC title like GTA IV in a list of titles that didn't get a 'good commercial reception'!!!!

  • toyota22

    Posted May 27, 2009 1:43 am PT

    wow looking forward.

  • CTR360

    Posted May 27, 2009 12:58 am PT

    mafia2 delayed too bad bioshock2 nba2k10 maxpayne3 on my list

  • gatsbythepig

    Posted May 26, 2009 11:12 pm PT

    Good thing I haven't invested int T2.

  • mrklorox

    Posted May 26, 2009 10:42 pm PT

    Sucks about Red Dead, but not in the least bit surprising. I had completely forgotten about Mafia II.

  • EnaVRi

    Posted May 26, 2009 10:22 pm PT

    good... take your time to develop the game...

  • XENOmorph00010

    Posted May 26, 2009 9:14 pm PT

    I'm really not surprised, I actually think Redemption might not come out till mid next year to be honest.

  • Gamer_4_Fun

    Posted May 26, 2009 9:06 pm PT

    I was so looking forward to Redemption, the only game that was a must buy for me this fall. OH well, i can wait for more quality.

  • bigd575

    Posted May 26, 2009 8:59 pm PT

    Dang I didn't want to see this.

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted May 26, 2009 8:51 pm PT

    Come on man! They are killing me with the Mafia II delays!

  • cowman_53

    Posted May 26, 2009 8:48 pm PT

    Did anyone expect red Dead this year? Eh more development time can't hurt anything, eh?

  • Warrior427

    Posted May 26, 2009 8:36 pm PT

    waiting sucks

  • Lebowski-Dude

    Posted May 26, 2009 8:11 pm PT

    I don't think Mafia II will be pushed back any, because the latest trailer says "Fall 2009". At least I hope not...I'm going nuts waiting for that game.

  • Mac11_Fanboy

    Posted May 26, 2009 7:44 pm PT

    fine with waiting for better games, take2 don't f**k about

  • valium88

    Posted May 26, 2009 7:37 pm PT

    better getting it late and finished, then early and unfinished, like from certain other companies who are to busy keeping their release dates..

  • ropumar

    Posted May 26, 2009 7:25 pm PT

    mafia seems above average. Was interested. While I don't like red dead setting rockstar is so good I could like even hating westerns...

  • viewtiful_jay

    Posted May 26, 2009 7:21 pm PT

    I wasn't really expecting Red this year, but I am kinda disappointed that Mafia 2 won't be out any time soon.

  • denicola_a_god posted May 26, 2009 7:14 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    denicola_a_god

    Posted May 26, 2009 7:14 pm PT (hide)

    woww take two blows

  • Lopur94

    Posted May 26, 2009 7:01 pm PT

    Well it's okay, we will be busy with GTA IV DLC and BioShock 2 anyways. Just make sure it does come out sometime

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