Take-Two Discusses ESPN Pricing, PSP, San Andreas UK Sales

Author: by Andrew Wilson, Simon Carless

In a talk given at the recent Harris Nesbitt Playtime financial conference, Take-Two president Paul Eibeler revealed that the company hasn't yet decided if it will continue the budget pricing of its ESPN sports game titles for the 2005 season. This year's Take-Two published iterations, ESPN NFL 2005, ESPN NBA 2005, and ESPN NHL 2005, all retailed for $19.99 in the U.S. Some commentators have seen the recent holiday season price drop for Electronic Arts sports titles as reason to believe EA is concerned by the increased rivalry in the lucrative arena, in which Madden NFL 2005 has already sold over 4 million copies. However, Take-Two's Eibeler is playing his cards close to his chest regarding plans for the the 2006-dated games, which will ship in mid-2005, being quoted by Reuters with a very non-committal: "We'll make judgments or decisions as we move forward." The financial presentation also had Take-Two illuminating its plans going forward, explicitly mentioning two PSP launch titles in production from Rockstar Leeds (formerly Max Payne Game Boy Advance developer Mobius Entertainment). The company also once again mentioned cult movie license The Warriors, in development at Rockstar Toronto, creators of the PlayStation 2 conversions for Oni and Max Payne. Elsewhere, Take-Two also released extremely positive news regarding Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas sales in the United Kingdom. The Entertainment & Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA) trade body revealed that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has become the fastest selling title of all time in the UK, according to Chart Track, since the game managed to sell over a million units in just nine days in just that single territory. Some analysts have argued that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas may sell as many as 4.5 million copies worldwide in its first week, on its way to perhaps 13-15 million copies over the life of the game, but no firm worldwide figures have yet been released.