Take-Two Cancels Several Unannounced Games, Quietly Delays Others

ign.com:

Take-Two has canceled several unannounced games and quietly delayed others amid what the publisher calls a "challenging consumer backdrop."

Take-Two made the announcement during today's earnings report, saying that "the development timelines of some of our titles have lengthened, especially as we strive to redefine the creative standards of excellence in our industry, which affect our release slate for the year."

Take-Two will incur a $54.2 million impairment charge in the fourth quarter "related to capitalized software development costs for unreleased and canceled console and PC titles." In May 2021, Take-Two said it was aiming to release some 62 game by 2024 across a variety of formats and platforms.

Delays and cancellations have become frequent in the games industry, impacting big-budget releases from Starfield to Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

Speaking with IGN, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick attributed the delays industry to consumer demand for excellence among other other factors.

"The best possible way to look at it is that we're all seeking quality and comsumers are demanding quality and sometimes that can take longer than expected," Zelnick said. "And another way to look at it is that we're having some productivity challenges. I think people here would say it's not all about productivity, it's about seeking excellence. I think the truth is probably somewhere in the middle."

Asked to clarify "producitivity challenges," Zelnick pointed to the company's hybrid work policy, which encourages workers to be in the office three times per week but sees many work remotely.

"My own personal view is we probably do our best work when we're together in person," Zelnick said. In terms of changing the policy, Zelnick said he