This week, Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two – whose CEO, Strauss Zelnick, six months ago denied closing two studios for what could best be described as no apparent reason – confirmed that it closed those two studios. Kerbal Space Program 2 developer Intercept Games and Rollerdrome creator Roll7 Studios are no more. This follows new financial results in which Take-Two also announced the sale of its indie-focused Private Division label to an undisclosed buyer. Anyway, you will not be surprised to learn that Zelnick is thrilled that Trump just got reelected.
Speaking to Variety, Zelnick, whose management company received $43,742,000 in fees and stock options from Take-Two this fiscal year, said he anticipates a “more sensible” Federal Trade Commission under incoming President/fascist cosplayer Donald Trump.
"I think that the President-elect has made it very plain that he believes in reducing regulation,” Zelnick said. “I do believe that the FTC was misguided during President Biden’s term, and I do think that the FTC tried to impede some transactions that were beneficial for both the companies in question and the economy at large, and the FTC lost all those cases since. So I do think that, depending on what the specific topic is, deregulation can be a positive, and I am certainly looking forward to [a] more sensible FTC.”
That’s one way of putting it. Another might be “a toothless FTC,” or a return to a status quo that allowed gargantuan mergers to soar through unimpeded. Under FTC chair Lina Khan, nominated by Biden in 2021, the regulatory body fought to ban non-compete clauses, launched a lawsuit against Amazon, sued healthcare companies engaging in sketchy behavior, and blocked a record number of mergers in an attempt to stem the tide of monopoly power in the United States.
One such merger – which eventually went through – was Microsoft’s $68.7 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard, which the FTC argued could harm consumers by substantially lessening competition in the gaming space. Regulatory scrutiny from both the FTC and the European Commission forced Microsoft to make several concessions, including a cloud gaming deal with Ubisoft. The FTC has since challenged Microsoft on its mass layoff of 1,900 employees in early 2024 and Game Pass’ horrible, convoluted pricing schemes.
I doubt Zelnick is the only video game CEO – or any kind of CEO – who is excited to return to the days when stuff like this rarely happened. I’m sure they will all wield this newfound lack of oversight responsibly and definitely not send the rot economy, already a slippery slope of sludge, into overdrive.
