GTA 'Will Not Maintain' its Position as Biggest Mainstream Franchise - PachterGTA, much like Madden, Gran Turismo and Mario, is one of those franchises that the mainstream almost always buys. Call of Duty in the last several years has risen to this status as well, and in fact, Activision's franchise may well be the king of the mainstream market, which at one point it could be argued was a title held by Rockstar's GTA.
"Call of Duty is bigger, and GTA will not maintain its position as the world's biggest mainstream franchise," Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter commented to IndustryGamers recently.
The main difference, of course, is that Rockstar takes its time with GTA, releasing one title every few years, whereas Activision has managed to successfully annualize Call of Duty and sell a boatload with every new iteration. That's kept Call of Duty top of mind with many gamers. While GTA might sell 25 million every four years, Call of Duty can sell 20 million essentially every year (at least for now).
"Eventually, Call of Duty may suffer from fatigue, and GTA could keep chugging along, but it will be 8 years before we can make that call," Pachter added.
GTA V is likely to be shipped sometime next year, although Take-Two has yet to officially announce the game.
