After just three days, Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto 5 hit $1 billion in sales, making it the fastest entertainment property in history to reach that milestone.
“Grand Theft Auto is a cultural phenomenon and Rockstar Games continues to redefine what can be achieved in interactive entertainment,” Chairman and CEO of Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two, Strauss Zelnick said in a press release. “We are incredibly proud of the extraordinary critical and commercial response to Grand Theft Auto V.”
After the game set single day sales records with $800 million sold worldwide in a 24-hour period, it isn’t a surprise that the game also set the record in reaching the $1 billion mark. The previous record holder, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, took 15 days to hit $1 billion after debuting with a then-record setting $500 million launch day. Grand Theft Auto 5 outsold Black Ops 2 by a healthy $300 million margin, so it was inevitable that it would cross the mark earlier as well.
The question now shifts from if Grand Theft Auto 5 will be a success (which it was expected to be from the start), to just how big a success it will be. The game should continue to sell well through the weekend, and likely for the rest of the month, if not longer. The online features haven’t even launched yet, and when they do on October 1 it could lead to another spike in sales.
The numbers aren’t just good news for Rockstar, but for the industry as a whole. Earlier this month the NPD reported that gaming sales for the year were the highest they had been in two years, and that was before Grand Theft Auto 5 was released. With several major releases still to come, including Batman: Arkham Origins, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, and Call of Duty: Ghosts, as well as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, this could end up being the best year for the gaming industry in a long, long time.
