Strauss Zelnick, head-honcho of Take 2, denied comment when asked for a specific Grand Theft Auto IV release date Thursday saying the publisher won't ship the game until it's ready.
"We're going to give a firm date when we are utterly convinced that we have it and that isn't right now," Zelnick said during an investor conference on Tuesday. "We're not in the business of disappointing investors."
In August, Grand Theft Auto IV was delayed from its originally scheduled October release to early 2008. "Certain elements of development proved to be more time-intensive than expected, especially given the commitment for a simultaneous release on two very different platforms," the company then said.
Take 2's unwillingness to commit to a release date has given rise to speculation that the GTA IV may be further delayed until holiday 2008 in an effort to optimize its sales. Nintendo reportedly used a similar strategy when delaying Zelda: Twilight Princess on GameCube for an entire year in 2006.