Take Two's Board Ousted by Shareholders

Some would view it as vaguely ironic that, on the same day that the GTA IV trailer makes its debut, the Take-Two board is finally ousted in the culmination of a nasty inter-corporate feud. CNN's Chris Morris reports on the latest development in the company's saga: "The accounting and ethical quagmires that have bogged down the company for the past few years are likely to disappear. And Take-Two will almost certainly become a leaner company, shedding divisions and canceling games ... The arrival of a new board may also ratchet down the public scrutiny of the company a few notches - but that respite from the spotlight's glare might not last as long as they would like. You see, the thing that makes this game maker different from the rest of the industry is its rebellious streak. It's something that drives opponents insane and causes mass migraines in the boardroom, but without it, Take-Two wouldn't be the force it is today."

Comments

Jack Thompson

[faloi]

How long before we get a /. post about Jack Thompson taking personal credit for ousting the board in the form of some long-winded self righteous diatribe?

Re:Jack Thompson

[Anonymous Coward]

I am taking personal credit for ousting the board in the form of some long-winded self righteous diatribe.

-Jack Thompson

Re:Jack Thompson

[Shadow Wrought]

That was my first thought. Especially since he told Ars Technica that he was going to see to it that somehting big was going to happen at the Take-Two meeting.

Re:Jack Thompson

[nuzak]

I'm going to see to it that the sun rises in the east tomorrow. Mark my words.

Re:Jack Thompson

[Shadow Wrought]

I'm going to see to it that the sun rises in the east tomorrow. Mark my words.

Pssshaw. Anyone can make the sun rise; It is a big ol' ball o' hydrogen after all, and everyone knows that hydrogen rises, but only I can make it set. You just watch. Tonight it fall out of the sky to the West.

Re:Jack Thompson

[gstoddart]

How long before we get a /. post about Jack Thompson taking personal credit for ousting the board in the form of some long-winded self righteous diatribe?

I think that was pre-emptively done last week or so ... seems he was prognosticaing their imminent demise and already saying he was the one who would be causing it.

You can probably count on some smug public statement from him real soon now. :-P

Cheers

How fitting

[Moggyboy]

"... the new board roared through the windows of the corporate bathroom in a beaten up Chevrolet, burst out of its doors brandishing crowbars and chainsaws, and yelled 'Crunch time, bitches!' before laying waste to the existing board of directors. After the bloodbath, the new executives fired some rocket launchers at observing SWAT helicopters before brushing themselves off and giving their first press release."

Inter vs. Intra

[richdun]

Since it happened within the company, and not between two or more companies, shouldn't that be "intra-corporate?"

Please, let's not even bring him up

[Anonymous Coward]

He may seek the publicity, but we have no reason to give it to him for free.

Rebellious?

[MikeRT]

Look, I'm generally very anti-authority as can be proved by sheer volume of criticism I have written that is critical of our government. However a game that glorifies criminality the way that Grand Theft Auto games do is not rebellious in the "good way," it's rebellious in a sociopathic sort of way. You have to be detached from reality to believe that it is healthy catharsis to play a game where you commit wanton crime against your fellow man; it's not the sort of violent catharsis you get in most first person shooters.

Re:Rebellious?

[Jaysyn]

Look, I'm generally very anti-authority as can be proved by sheer volume of criticism I have written that is critical of our government. However a movie that glorifies criminality the way that crime movies do is not rebellious in the "good way," it's rebellious in a sociopathic sort of way. You have to be detached from reality to believe that it is healthy catharsis to watch a movie where you see wanton crime against your fellow man; it's not the sort of violent catharsis you get in most comedies.

Look, I'm generally very anti-authority as can be proved by sheer volume of criticism I have written that is critical of our government. However a novel that glorifies criminality the way that crime novels do is not rebellious in the "good way," it's rebellious in a sociopathic sort of way. You have to be detached from reality to believe that it is healthy catharsis to read a
novel about wanton crime against your fellow man; it's not the sort of violent catharsis you get in most technical manuals.

Re:Rebellious?

[amuro98]

But shows like The Sopranos and Prison Break are OK because they don't glofify crimes or violence against an otherwise law-abiding society?

Not to mention our continual worship of and fascination with real-life, violent criminals ranging from Billy The Kid to Al Capone.

The most normal, law-abiding citizen is going to ocassionally fantasize about being "evil", or taking a baseball bat to their neighbor's face after he played movies on his surround sound system so loudly, that your floor was vibrating until 3am. The difference is that the normal, mature adult will put aside these impulses and deal with the problem in a more constructive manner.

Even writers admit that they enjoy writing for the villian more than for the hero as it gives them an opportunity to explore those dark impulses in a harmless and constructive fashion.

So long as such dalliances into the darker side of human nature remain fantasy, there's no harm. In fact, I'd say they're a healthy way to channel your aggressions and stress from accumulated from day-to-day living. After all, you really can't go around smashing things up in real-life, but in a video game? Feel free to go nuts! Bad drive home? Pop in some Burnout, go looking for that #*!)%# blue car that cut you off today so you can send him flying into the path of that oncoming semi-truck.

Re:Rebellious?

[nuzak]

Then don't buy it.