Take-Two Holds Full-Year Outlook as NBA 2K and GTA Offset Mobile Decline

Take-Two Interactive beat its own forecast for the opening quarter of fiscal 2027 and left the full-year outlook untouched, according to the earnings release it published on August 7, 2026. Net bookings of $1.39 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2026 came in above the company’s $1.32 to $1.37 billion guidance range, with stronger-than-expected results from NBA 2K and the Grand Theft Auto series absorbing a 7% decline in mobile.

GAAP net revenue rose 2% year over year to $1.53 billion, while net loss widened to $34.1 million, or $0.18 per share, from $11.9 million a year earlier. A large part of that swing sits in a single line: cost of revenue included a $43.4 million impairment charge tied to what the filing describes as “the Company’s decision not to proceed with further development of an unannounced title in its pipeline from a third-party developer.”

The company didn’t name the cancelled game. Chief Accounting Officer Hannah Sage confirmed to GamesIndustry.biz that the title was one of the three core new-IP releases Take-Two had counted in the three-year pipeline it outlined with its fiscal 2026 results. That would leave Project ETHOS, the 2K shooter that was recently rebooted with layoffs at developer 31st Union, and Ken Levine’s Judas at Ghost Story Games as the company’s confirmed new IP in development.

NBA 2K and Grand Theft Auto carried the quarter

In the company’s prepared remarks for the August 7 earnings call, CEO Strauss Zelnick said NBA 2K26 has now sold in more than 12 million units, up 9% on NBA 2K25, closing out what he called a record year for the franchise. Engagement moved with it: recurrent consumer spending on NBA 2K grew 7%, average daily active users rose 15%, MyCAREER daily users climbed 25%, and average games played per user increased 35%.

Grand Theft Auto V passed 230 million units sold in worldwide, and the series’ recurrent spending grew 3%. Recurrent consumer spending overall, which covers virtual currency, add-on content, in-game purchases and in-game advertising, declined 1% for the period, better than the 3% decline Take-Two had guided, and accounted for 84% of net bookings.

On mobile, which still delivered roughly 53% of net bookings, Zynga performed in line with expectations. Toon Blast bookings grew 8%, Words With Friends grew 8%, and Top Eleven rose 15%, but the portfolio couldn’t offset the broader 7% mobile decline the company attributes to tough comparisons against last year’s breakout Color Block Jam and moderating trends across several mature Zynga titles.

Take-Two’s cancelled game lands in a record results season

The impairment arrives less than three months after Take-Two framed its fiscal 2027 pipeline as the deepest in its history. Grand Theft Auto VI launches November 19, 2026, and Zelnick told investors the title is seeing “an exceptional start to pre-orders” without disclosing figures. Newzoo data published in July 2026 put the game on pace for a record pre-order campaign, and Rockstar opened those pre-orders alongside the locked November date in June 2026.

The cancellation also continues a trim of Take-Two’s new-IP bets that began well before this quarter. Project ETHOS, announced in 2024 as 2K’s free-to-play hero shooter, underwent a reboot with staff cuts earlier this year, and the company’s three-year pipeline now counts one fewer core new-IP release than it did in May 2026. The company’s earnings presentation shows the label mix for the full year tilting toward its established franchises: Rockstar Games is expected to contribute roughly 37% of net bookings, Zynga 34%, and 2K 29%.

What Take-Two expects from here

The full-year outlook holds at $8.0 to $8.2 billion in net bookings, a figure CFO Lainie Goldstein said represents approximately 20% growth over fiscal 2026 at the midpoint, with recurrent consumer spending expected to stay flat year over year at 64% of bookings. GAAP net revenue guidance is unchanged at $7.9 to $8.1 billion, though the company trimmed its operating-expense range to $4.15 to $4.17 billion from $4.18 to $4.20 billion and nudged capital spending up to approximately $290 million to cover a planned real estate purchase.

The second quarter, ending September 30, 2026, is guided to $1.62 to $1.67 billion in net bookings against $1.96 billion in the same quarter last year, with a projected 5% decline in recurrent spending and a GAAP net loss of $140 to $157 million. The quarter’s marquee release is NBA 2K27 on September 4, 2026, with Victor Wembanyama on the Standard Edition cover, Caitlin Clark on the Deluxe, and Derrick Rose on the Ultra.

Between now and the GTA VI launch, Take-Two’s calendar stacks Mafia: The Old Country’s Man of Honor expansion on August 14, 2026, an NBA 2K27 full game reveal on August 18, 2026, the WWE 2K26 WrestleMania 42 pack on August 19, 2026, and Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto VI: An Extended Look presentation on August 27, 2026. The company reiterated it expects to finish the fiscal year with more than $1 billion in operating cash flow and in a net cash position.