Rockstar working on five separate projects - Analyst

LOS ANGELES--Rockstar Games may not have any titles at this week's Electronic Entertainment Expo, but the Take-Two label is hard at work on a full slate of games. According to Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter, five Rockstar studio locations are currently working on their own discrete projects.

Pachter reported the tidbit in a note to investors recapping his E3 experience, in particular meetings with publishing executives. The Rockstar information came from Pachter's Take-Two management recap. Given the publisher's revenue expectations from Rockstar, Pachter said at least one of these Rockstar projects is certain to launch by the March 2013 end of Take-Two's fiscal year.

Pachter believes one of the Rockstar Games due this fiscal year is the label's only currently announced but unreleased project, Grand Theft Auto V. Given the game's absence at E3 this year, Pachter said a pre-holiday release this year is "less likely." However, he said retailers would likely be told of its launch three to four months in advance, "suggesting that a GTA release date announcement is virtually certain to occur by November."