GTA 5 and Mafia 3 Not to be Compared, Says Take-Two CEO

The newly announcedMafia 3 should not be compared to the Grand Theft Auto franchise, according to publisher Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick.

When asked during an earnings call if Mafia 3 would resemble the open-world gameplay and style of a Rockstar game like Grand Theft Auto, Zelnick said Mafia 3 is a “completely different experience.”

“I wouldn’t compare it to anything else out there. The [Gamescom 2015] reveal was great, but it stands alone,” he said.

“We don’t use any other game in the same sentence as Grand Theft Auto,” he added. “It is the industry’s standard-bearer. It’s not up for comparison.”

Take-Two maintains two labels under which it develops and publishes video games: Rockstar and 2K Games. During the same earnings call, Zelnick noted that the two labels do not share development technology with each other, further differentiating Mafia 3 from GTA.

"We're blessed that we have two distinct labels at this company," he said. "We do not have a tech-sharing environment. We're a very congenial company, but we don't think that's the best way to get the best out of our development folks. It's not the way it works around here."

Take-Two also revealed that Mafia 3 will be released before the end of the company’s fiscal year 2017, which ends April 2016. The game’s announcement trailer at Gamescom last week revealed a 2016 release window for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, but nothing more concrete than that.

Via GameSpot