GameStop is having a great year. So far, they’ve managed to post up a record-breaking quarter, navigate the waters of EA’s Online Pass and it would seem that they are very pleased with the way Red Dead Redemption is selling.
An investors call revealed GameStop’s sentiments concerning the sales figures as Tony Bartel, executive VP of merchandise and marketing spoke of better-than-expected numbers for the Rockstar title. Wedbush Morgan analyst was initially bearish on the game, and it would seem that GameStop may have agreed with his early assessment, considering the retailer's reaction to the game's performance thus far. “Red Dead Redemption has been one of the very positive surprises,” Bartel stated. “It probably has outperformed as large as any title has so far year-to-year-to-date.”
Since the game was just released on May 18, Bartel was likely referencing a combination of pre-order sales numbers and early sales. Regardless, it lends credence to Red Dead’s popularity across gaming community websites, and that could be translating into incredibly high sales figures. Though it was speculated that the title would not appeal to a mass market, that thought has since been redacted, and Rockstar studios is once again on track for a major blockbuster this year.
