Grand Theft Auto publisher now has 2 of the 5 best-selling video games of all time

Red Dead Redemption 2 is now the fourth best-selling video game release of all time with over 79 million copies shipped & sold digitally on PS4, Xbox One.

Grand Theft Auto publisher now has 2 of the 5 best-selling video games of all time
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Senior Gaming Editor
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TL;DR: Take-Two Interactive boasts two of the top five best-selling video games, Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V with 220 million shipments and Red Dead Redemption 2 with 79 million. Their strategy combines annual sports titles and blockbuster releases, ensuring sustained revenue and long-term success in the gaming industry.

Take-Two Interactive now has 2 out of the top 5 best-selling video games of all time under its belt, and both of the titles are from Rockstar Games.

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Take-Two Interactive is a strong force of the games industry, commanding some of the biggest franchises of the planet with Grand Theft Auto and the 2K Basketball series. The publisher's franchise slate is enviable, with annualized sports games churning out consistent revenue while colossal, multi-year releases like Grand Theft Auto V span multiple console generations and rake in over a decade of sales.

This diversified portfolio has given Take-Two a golden strategy for gaming: Sports games rake in thunderous yearly sales and microtransaction earnings, while marquee hits generate millions of sales per quarter (on top of GTA Online cash). When it comes to game sales, Rockstar shines brighter than the rest.

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Two of the top selling video games in history are from Rockstar Games--the latest figures were confirmed in Take-Two's Q2'26 results, with GTA V at 220 million shipments, and Red Dead Redemption 2 at 79 million.

  • Minecraft - 350 million
  • Grand Theft Auto V - 220 million
  • Wii Sports - 82.9 million
  • Red Dead Redemption 2 - 79 million
  • Mario Kart 8 / Deluxe - 78.02 million

Typically, we would include Tetris in this list, but that game has been re-released in so many different variations that it's hard to keep track. As a result, Tetris is technically counted as a franchise and not a singular game release. But if it were included, it would knock Mario Kart 8 off the list, and Take-Two would still technically be where it is today.

The best-seller data brings to mind GTA 6's recent game delay, and how Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick basically echoes the age-old decree about game delays:

"It's always painful when we move a date. We have done so occasionally in the past, and we've never regretted it in retrospect," Zelnick told investors in TTWO's Q2 earnings call.

These two bestsellers, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto V, had both been delayed by Rockstar Games before release.