T2 swings to loss in Q1, LA Noire ships 4 million units
Take Two has reported a loss for its first quarter FY2012, whilst also confirming that Team Bondi title LA Noire has shipped 4 million units and Red Dead Redemption has shipped more than 10 million units.
T2's net revenue for Q1 was at $334.4 million, a 12 percent decrease from $375.4 million in the same period last year. GAAP loss was at $8.6 million compared to $27.4 million in GAAP income.
The biggest key player for Take Two in Q1 was Rockstar's LA Noire: the Team Bondi investigative thriller has sold-in - or shipped - 4 million units since its release in May. The company also seen the release of 2K's Duke Nukem Forever in June. No numbers were provided, though.
Red Dead Redemption, since its release last May, has shipped 11 million units, the publisher has also confirmed. Undead Nightmares, its zombie expansion, has shipped 2 million units at retail
"During the first quarter, we delivered revenue and Non-GAAP profits that were in line with our expectations," said Take Two CEO Strauss Zelnick.
"Our results benefited from the launch of Rockstar's groundbreaking and critically acclaimed title - L.A. Noire, the release of Duke Nukem Forever, continued strong sales of NBA 2K11 and Red Dead Redemption, and growth in digitally delivered content.
"Given our solid performance year-to-date and robust pipeline of upcoming new releases, we are well positioned to be profitable on a Non-GAAP basis in fiscal year 2012."
Aftermath
Take Two's shares fell five percent in after-hours trading following the earnings release.
Speaking in a conference call to investors, Zelnick said Duke Nukem is "projected to be profitable" despite notoriously poor critical performance and PR scandals, although no sales figures were given. Poor Duke sales and increased marketing costs across Take Two's portfolio were noted as factors contributing to the loss this quarter.
Take Two seems set to continue expansion into non-traditional platforms.
"We're focused on building new franchises, diversifying our approach. For example, you can look at what Red Dead Redemption did for us in our last fiscal year," Zelnick commented, presumably referring to the game's notable DLC performance.
Take Two noted $24.6 million in DLC-based revenue, a 49 percent year-on-year increase led by strong offerings from Borderlands, Red Dead Redemption, Civilization, Grand Theft Auto, LA Noire and Duke Nukem Forever.
Zelnick referenced online and mobile platforms as another area of interest, as with 2K's recent releases Civilization World on Facebook and Sid Meier's Pirates on iDevice.
However, he expressed reservations about the social space, pointing to market leader Zynga and commenting that its games "don't scratch the same itch" as Grand Theft Auto et al.
Zelnick was typically cagey bout upcoming releases, referencing at least one unannounced title - presumed to be Grand Theft Auto V after months of rumours.
NBA 2K11 was also highlighted, with 5.5 million sales over the course of the quarter.