Grand Theft Auto V could sell around 18 million copies in Take-Two's fiscal year and even topple the mighty Call of Duty series from its anual chart dominance, predicts industry analysts.
Sterne Agee's Arvind Bhatia estimates development costs for the game total around $137.5 million, reports Games Industry. That's taking into account a 250-strong development team working over five years. He also estimates a marketing spend of between $69 million and $109.3 million.Despite huge costs, and the recent delay from Spring to September, Bhatia thinks Take-Two is poised to make big returns on its investment.
The firm could sell anywhere between 15 million and 25 million, generating operating profit from $193.6 million to $390.8 million respectively, according to Bhatia's estimates.
He also says GTA V could even outsell this year's new Call of Duty, and that only Activision's FPS series stands a chance of forcing GTA to settle for second.
As reported yesterday, Cowen & Company analyst Doug Creutz has suggested that Rockstar may be planning to eventually release the game on the next generation of consoles in some form, following news of its delay to September.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...-duty-analyst/