“Red Dead Redemption 2” might have traditional story-based downloadable content after launch, but developer Rockstar Games is not making any specific announcements just yet, publisher Take-Two Interactive’s president, Karl Slatoff, said during a call with investment and research firm Cowen on Wednesday.
The traditional DLC business model has been very lucrative for Take-Two, Slatoff said. He called it a “very compelling” model for consumers as well. “It allows them to continue to engage with a game in a way they’re used to engaging with the game,” he said.
“I think across the board — not specifically speaking about ‘Red Dead’ or Rockstar Games, but across the board — we do see downloadable content as an interesting business model for us,” he added. “And it certainly depends on a game-by-game basis whether that makes sense.”
It apparently didn’t make sense for “Grand Theft Auto V.” While Rockstar has created excellent single-player expansions for previous “GTA” titles, this time it chose to focus on a multiplayer mode instead. “GTA Online” has churned out a steady stream of content since launch and it’s currently a large source of revenue for Take-Two.
“It was a record year for us for ‘GTA Online’ after almost five years out, a really incredible accomplishment by Rockstar Games,” Slatoff said. “I think, actually, we’ve exceeded our own expectations every single quarter since the game’s release and hopefully we’ll continue to do so in the future.”
“Grand Theft Auto V” is reportedly the most financially successful media title of all time. It’s sold over 95 million copies since its debut in 2013 and could cross the 100 million mark by the end of 2018.
