Despite having been treated to a trailer we still have no idea when Grand Theft Auto V is going to hit stores. And the industry increasingly needs a GTA-sized hit to help its bottom line.
At one time most analysts thought it would be out in 2012, possibly just in time for the holiday season when sales are rampant. But the lack of any showing at E3 2012 suggests GTA V will not now be released until early in 2013.
As VentureBeat explores this could spell disaster for the games industry, which has seen dwindling levels of revenue in recent years. GTA 5 could generate $700 million in revenue in the U.S. alone, which is around 10 percent of software sales.
Clearly Rockstar cannot be held accountable for the fluctuating returns of the games industry by itself, but the fact is the GTA series is one of the very few guaranteed to bring in the big money. If only there was one released every year.
