GameStop sees strong ''GTA4'' advance orders

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: GameStop Corp expects advance orders for Take-Two Interactive Software Inc's "Grand Theft Auto 4" video game to rank among the most it has ever booked, an executive said on Tuesday.

GameStop, the biggest specialty video-game retailer in the country, also expects "Grand Theft Auto 4" to spur purchases of Microsoft Corp's Xbox 360 and Sony Corp's PlayStation 3 consoles.

"On pre-orders, it's really tracking where we anticipated it to be," said Bob McKenzie, GameStop's senior vice president of merchandising. "It probably will land within the top three. There were a couple titles we shipped last year that had larger reservations."

"We're not to the finish line with it yet but definitely it's very strong and we're happy with where the reservation activity is coming in," McKenzie said.

"Grand Theft Auto 4", in which players prowl the criminal underbelly of a fictionalized New York City, goes on sale next Tuesday for $60 and is expected to be the biggest video game of the year.

Grapevine, Texas-based GameStop encourages customers to "pre-order" big titles, meaning they pay in advance for a game and are guaranteed copies the day it launches.

Shares in GameStop have climbed 61 percent over the past year amid strong hardware sales, a steady stream of blockbuster titles and higher prices on new games.

The retail chain also plans to have 85 percent of its 4,100 U.S. stories open their doors at midnight on Tuesday to start sales of the highly anticipated title, McKenzie said.

Stores also were stocking more Xbox 360s and PS3s out of expectations that many gamers who have yet to upgrade to the new systems will be inspired to do so by "GTA4".

"There aren't many titles that are going to be hardware movers but 'Grand Theft Auto' always has shown the trend in the past that it has that ability," McKenzie said.

"Because these titles are powerful enough to drive system sales, it gives us great opportunity to really have a longer tail on the sell-through. This will be a strong title all the way through the year."

GameStop was also eyeing the opportunity to sell "GTA4" customers on related products such as a $20 strategy guide and the PS3's new vibrating controller, which sells for $55, McKenzie said.