Take-Two wouldn’t rule out a Grand Theft Auto HD remaster

During Take-Two’s most recent Investor Call, CEO Strauss Zelnick has mentioned the publisher wouldn’t be against a Grand Theft Auto HD remaster for the current generation of consoles. While the statement below doesn’t necessarily mean a GTA, Max Payne, or even a Red Dead HD remake is on its way, it does show the company is aware of the possible demand, and more importantly – profit.

“In any given year, we and our key competitors launch new intellectual properties and new iterations of older properties,” explains Zelnick. “And occasionally, when we see a platform shift, we will take an old property and create an iteration of that in a very similar form for next-gen. And we wouldn’t rule anything out. That would be driven by the market opportunity that we perceive, and the potential for delivering a quality release. And that would be very much something that also would be driven by the passion of our labels (Rockstar and 2K).”

“It would not be something that we would mandate to our labels. Our labels are driven by the desire to delight consumers and pursue their creative passions, and that’s been a formula that’s worked extraordinarily well for this company for the past seven years (referring to the takeover). So we don’t have a policy answer to it, except our job around here is to make sure that consumers are thrilled; to deliver the very best titles in the marketplace and to make sure that for the top creative talent industry that this is the number one place to work.”

Moreover, the CEO has reiterated the reason behind GTA V’s PC delay, and – as expected – it relates to Rockstar’s desire of getting out the best product possible. “When we move a title, it’s almost always the same answer, which is giving a title a bit more development time to make sure that it can be everything that it ought to be. And while we would prefer never to change a release date, it’s proven to be a good move for us in general. We have the highest Metacritic ratings in the business, and that correlates with revenue and ultimately, of course, profitability.”

Grand Theft Auto V launches on November 18th on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, while PC gamers will get it on January 27th, 2015.