BioShock 2 Delay Causes Take 2 Stock Plummet
- Scribbled on July 14th, 2009 by Jordan Lund
- Filed in Industry News, Microsoft Xbox 360, PC, Release Date(s), Shooter, Sony PlayStation 3
Fans of games are never happy to hear when an eagerly anticipated title is delayed, but it turns out game company shareholders are even more unhappy when that happens. Take-Two found that out the hard way Monday, when their stock dropped $1.12 per share (more than 12%) on news that Bioshock 2 won’t be making it for the big holiday season after all, and instead is being pushed back to fiscal year 2010.
Everyone, take a deep breath here, because the news isn’t as dire as it sounds.
The first Bioshock game was itself delayed from June to August 2007, and yes, while there were some glitches on the PC side, the Xbox 360 side launched pretty smoothly. Of course at that time it was an unknown quanity so the pressure of a delay was much lower. But think of it like this: everyone and their cousin releases games in the Fall of the year. First, to gear up for Christmas sales and second – a pet theory – because that’s when college students get all the money they’re supposed to spend on books.
Postponing the launch not only gives them more time to polish the game, it moves the launch from a time when there’s a glut of games to a time when, really, not a lot is going on for new releases. In the end, Take-Two stands to make more money being a big fish in a small pond than in a lake with 200 other trout. Gamers will benefit from having a better game and Take-Two will have their stock re-bound when it’s clear their Q1 FY 2010 sales crush those of Q1 FY 2009.
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