On Thursday, Take-Two announced that it was delaying the release of GTA IV, possibly as long as six months. The game has been moved into Take-Two's second fiscal quarter 08, which means it might not release until April 2008. Although the company's Chairman and Chief Executive both deflected concerns regarding the delay, the stock market bit back. By the end of August second, Take-Two shares (NASDAQ: TTWO) were at $16.91; by early Friday they were at $14.29. As of this writing, they've managed to sink to $14.16, which is a stronger statement about how serious a problem this delay is than any press release.


On a less gloomy note, we're certainly pleased to see Rockstar giving Grand Theft Auto IV more time in development. This is the first true sequel in the series since GTA III. It can't hurt to give a project this big extra time. But we hope that Take-Two can make it through the holiday season with both Manhunt 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV not looking like they'll be here for Christmas.