“GTA 6” has to follow one of the bestselling video games of all time

The predecessor of “GTA 6” was just behind “Tetris” and “Minecraft” in all-time sales.

2/10/25 11:20AM

Amid a postpandemic hangover for the wider industry, video game makers are taking a leaf out of Hollywood’s playbook, hoping that sequels and reboots can propel the industry back to growth.

Strategy heavy “Civilization VII” is out officially tomorrow, Medieval favorite “Kingdom Come: Deliverance II” hit the (mostly digital) shelves a week ago, and the OG “The Sims” will be rereleased in celebration of the franchise’s 25th anniversary.

But none of those high-profile games carry the weight of expectation that “Grand Theft Auto 6” will shoulder when it debuts this fall. Even just the confirmation that the game will come out this year was enough for the share price of owner Take-Two Interactive to soar last week.

Predicted to make $3.2 billion in sales in its first 12 months, the latest of the “GTA” series will easily be the biggest debut of the year, following after its predecessor, which sold 210 million copies, ranking as the third-most-sold video game of all time according to data compiled by GameSpot.

Given how much the industry has moved on since “GTA 5,” breaking into this top 10 and unseating classics like the “Super Mario” series from Nintendo — games that were often bundled with the company’s popular hardware products — will be a monumental task. Indeed, as the supply of video games has exploded, even megahits like Microsoft’s open-world game “Minecraft” have topped out at roughly 300 million sales, which is why iconic block-sorting game “Tetris” is likely to top this list for decades.

Consoling

Gaming companies have been reporting lackluster earnings in February: a disappointing outlook from Roblox pushed its shares down on Thursday, Electronic Arts’ “EA Sports FC 25” is underwhelming gamers, and Nintendo’s Switch sales are slipping, too.

Millie Giles

WITHDRAWALS

56m

Bank branches are still closing at breakneck speed in the US

Institutions such as Chase and Wells Fargo closed 76 locations in just six weeks over the summer, per the OCC.

Indianapolis - March 2016: Chase Bank III

Nia Warfield

19h

Fox and News Corp slide as investors digest $3.3 billion Murdoch succession settlement

Fox and News Corp shares dropped on Tuesday after Rupert Murdoch’s heirs agreed to a $3.3 billion settlement to resolve a long-running succession drama.

Under the deal, Prudence, Elisabeth, and James Murdoch will each receive about $1.1 billion, paid for in part by Fox selling 16.9 million Class B voting shares and News Corp selling 14.2 million shares. The stock sales will raise roughly $1.37 billion on behalf of the three heirs.

The new trust for Lachlan Murdoch will now control about 36.2% of Fox’s Class B shares and roughly 33.1% of News Corp’s stock, granting him uncontested voting authority over both companies for the next 25 years. Originally, the Murdoch trust was designed to hand over voting control of Fox and News Corp to Prudence, Elisabeth, Lachlan, and James after his death.

Investors are weighing the trade-off. Clear leadership under Lachlan may resolve conflict internally, but the share dilution, executed at a roughly 4.5% discount, means long-term investors now hold slightly less clout than before.

Both companies’ stocks were trading close to all-time highs prior to the announcement.

385 ✈️ 434

Max Knoblauch

19h

Boeing on Tuesday announced that it delivered 57 commercial jets in August, its best total for the month in seven years. That brings its year-to-date delivery total to 385 planes, eclipsing its full-year 2024 figure by about 11%.

The August figure marked Boeing’s second-highest delivery total of 2025 and represented a 43% jump from the same month last year. Through August, Boeing has boosted its deliveries by 50% from last year.

The plane maker is still trailing its European rival Airbus, which delivered 61 planes in August and 434 year to date.

Nia Warfield

9/8/25

Tariffs finally crept into retail's latest earnings results. Who were the winners and losers?

The long-awaited levies took a toll on nearly every retailer, but execution separated who could steer through the costs.