Analyst: Take-Two "more than Grand Theft Auto"

An analyst at The Oxen Group has said 2K and Rockstar parent company Take-Two Interactive no longer needs the Grand Theft Auto series to succeed, and requires only one good year in four to succeed.

As seen on stock market blog Seeking Alpha, The Oxen Group considers that Take-Two "has shown that they can do it without GTA."

"This is not a one-horse show any longer," the analyst commented. "The company is taking its groundbreaking style of doing things and funneling it into new genres – basketball, Western, and now in 2011, games like LA Noire ... and Duke Nukem Forever should not be overlooked."

So strong is Take-Two's current position and future line-up that the analyst predicts that GTA V could carry the company for four years - and could perhaps do without it.

'If the company can just have one great year in the next four ... with a few other modest years and even one year of negative income, this stock should be able to improve 100%," the analyst wrote.

As well as Red Dead Redemption and the Civilization series, NBA 2K11 was singled out for special accolade as an example of Take-Two's emphasis on "high-quality games that are starting to get a major following", as the recipient of 25 awards.

The analyst concluded by awarding Take-Two's management lineup an eight out of ten score, and disclosing a future purchase.