Grand Theft Auto 5 sales top 80 million

Grand Theft Auto 5 has moved 80 million copies since its 2013 launch, Take-Two Interactive told investors today after yesterday's announcement that Red Dead Redemption 2 was being delayed into 2018.

In the call, Take-Two also obliquely confirmed that Red Dead Redemption 2 would not release sooner than April 2018. The publisher's fiscal year ends March 31, and the 2018 fiscal year that began April 1 of this year has just two confirmed titles so far: NBA 2K18 and WWE 2K18, both licensed sports titles expected every year. The only other announced products are two DLC packs for Mafia 3 coming later this month and in the summer.

Grand Theft Auto 5 and, in particular, the revenue from Grand Theft Auto Online continues to be a strong performer for Take-Two, the parent of GTA publisher Rockstar Games. Take-Two said that the game has moved 80 million units to retailers, including 5 million in the first three months of 2017. That number is "sold-in," which is copies sent to merchants.

It's also the same number of units sold as Mafia 3 since its Oct. 7 launch. The PC-only title Civilization 6, which launched Oct. 21, has shipped 2 million units. NBA 2K17, which released Sept. 20, has sold almost 8 million units.

Take-Two's share price didn't seem to suffer from yesterday's Red Dead Redemption delay news. In fact, it 16 cents above the opening price on Monday. Today, news that Rockstar expects revenue in its 2019 fiscal year commensurate with what it's seen in a Grand Theft Auto launch year shot the stock up $3 to about $72 in morning trading.