Take-Two Interactive has reported a weaker-than-expected second financial quarter. Net bookings fell 18% to US$1.6 billion (approximately AU$2.4 billion) while a disappointing initial performance from NBA 2K27 was offset by the incredible demand for the upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6.

The publisher, with a portfolio that includes Rockstar Games, 2K and Zynga, reported net revenue of US$1.5 billion for the three months, down 16% compared with the same period last year.

Despite the decline, the company remains confident, with CEO Strauss Zelnick pointing to the growing anticipation surrounding GTA 6, which is scheduled to launch on November 19 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Speaking about the upcoming blockbuster, Zelnick said pre-orders were tracking “far in excess” of the company’s initial expectations.

GTA 6 has attracted close to 10 million pre-orders worldwide, generating approximately US$942 million in revenue ahead of its release, according to market intelligence company Sensor Tower

The strong response comes as the publisher prepares for what could become one of the biggest video game launches in history. With the previous instalment, Grand Theft Auto 5, having now sold nearly 235 million copies worldwide, the franchise has shown it has longevity.

However, not all of Take-Two’s major releases have performed as expected.

NBA 2K27, which launched on September 4, sold more than four million copies and achieved the second-highest launch performance in the franchise’s history. But the title fell short of the company’s internal forecasts for the quarter.

Some of that was attributed by Take-Two as being due to an unusually crowded release window, with the company expressing confidence that additional post-launch content will lead to more player engagement and spending throughout the rest of the financial year.

The company is planning a largest post-launch content programme, the biggest in NBA 2K history, clearly hoping to strengthen recurring consumer spending and improve the game’s commercial performance.

The Borderlands franchise has surpassed 100 million units sold and Take-Two’s mobile gaming broadly performed in line with expectations. Its wider portfolio continues to be a source of recurring revenue.

Take-Two maintained its full-year net bookings forecast of US$8 billion to US$8.2 billion, highlighting there is confidence upcoming releases and stronger performance during the second half of the financial year.

The company also expects operating expenses to increase approximately 21% year-on-year in its third quarter, which is associated with marketing expenditure for GTA 6.