Karl Slatoff
Analyst · Ben Schachter of Macquarie
Thanks, Strauss. I'd like to begin by congratulating 2K and Visual Concepts for their record-breaking launch of NBA 2K16, which once again raised the bar for our annual basketball series. In addition to delivering an even more true-to-life NBA experience, the team has done an exceptional job keeping consumer highly engaged with the title after their initial purchase. I'll now discuss our recent releases and pipeline for the remainder of fiscal 2016. On October 8, 2K and Cat Daddy Games extended our portfolio of action-packed mobile entertainment experiences with the release of NHL SuperCard. This collectible card battle game challenges players to build teams of current and legendary NHL players, train them and test their skills in exhibition, season and rivals-based actions.
On October 9, 2K and Firaxis Games launched Sid Meier’s Civilization Beyond Earth – Rising Tide, a massive expansion pack for the Sci-Fi title from our award-winning Civilization series, which have captivated fans for nearly a quarter of a century. Rising Tide has earned rare reviews from top critics, including a 9 out of 10 from both Game Informer and GameStop. The pack enriches beyond-earth experience by offering a robust array of expansion content with even more strategic ways to shape humanities future on an alien planet.
On October 27, 2K released WWE 2K16, the latest installment in our popular sports entertainment series. The title enjoyed a successful launch, including significantly high reviews scores versus last year's release. For example, IGN scored WWE 2K16 an 8.8 out of 10, stating that the title is as close to a fusion of performance and competition as a wrestling game as ever gotten. WWE 2K16 strong reviews are among the best ever received by the series and reflect Yukes' and Visual Concepts' ongoing commitment to improve its quality with each annual release.
In keeping with our focus on driving recurrent consumer spending, WWE 2K16 is being supported with a robust array of downloadable add-on content, and we're already seeing strong attach rate for its Season Pass. We've had an excellent start to the holiday season, and our marketing campaigns are in full swing. Whether its physical or online retailers, we will have a significant presence at all key points of purchase. We believe that interactive entertainment will be a must-have category during this holiday season, and we expect the installed base of new gen consoles to continue to grow. With our industry-leading portfolio of offerings, Take-Two is well positioned to capitalize on these positive trends.
Looking ahead to our fourth quarter, on February 5, 2K will launch XCOM 2 for PC, the sequel to the 2012 Game of the Year, award-winning strategy title XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Developed by Firaxis Games, XCOM 2 will feature deep replayability and offer a high level of modding support. Last month, the title was featured at the second annual Firaxicon event in Baltimore, where the development team hosted a panel and unveiled more of the games aliens and enemies. Consumers who prepurchase or preorder XCOM 2 will receive the Resistance Warrior Pack that provides increased soldier customization options.
An important component of our strategy is to promote consumer engagement with our brands, and we intend to support virtually all of our upcoming titles with innovative offerings designed to drive recurrent consumer spending. We also released new content for recent titles, including additional free updates for Grand Theft Auto Online.
Turning to our online initiatives in Asia. We continue to make process on Civilization Online, our free-to-play, mass multiplayer online game developed in partnership with renowned South Korean-based studio XLGAMES. The titles are expected to enter open beta shortly, which will help to usher in its commercial launch during the current fiscal year.
In addition to Korea, we plan to bring Civilization Online to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and China through our publishing partnerships with Game First and Qihoo 360. Looking ahead to next fiscal year, significant buzz is already building for Mafia III, the next installment in our successful organized crime series. Last month, the title was featured on the cover of Game Informer magazine, which included an in-depth, 12-page story that highlighted the game's key characters, evocative, loyal [ph] and settings and bold new direction for the series. Mafia III currently is in development at 2K's Hangar 13 studio and is planned for release during fiscal 2017. 2K and Hangar 13 will reveal more details about the title in the coming months.
In addition, we announced today that Battleborn, our groundbreaking new first-person shooter from 2K and Gearbox Software, the creators of Borderlands, is now planned for launch on May 3, 2016. We believe that extending development by a few months will allow the team enough time to fully realize the creative vision for Battleborn and enable them to deliver the best entertainment experience possible.
2K recently revealed Battleborn's competitive 5-on-5 multiplayer modes, which will complement the game's cooperative story mode. Early next year, Battleborn will have an open beta across all platforms for which PlayStation 4 owners will receive early access. We very much appreciate consumers' anticipation for Battleborn, and we are confident that the game will be well worth the extra wait when it launches in May. In addition, our worldwide development teams are working on numerous unannounced projects, including new intellectual properties and offerings from our established franchises. A robust development pipeline extends years into the future and promises to captivate audiences and set new benchmarks for creative excellence.
Quality remains our watchword and is the foundation of our relationship with our consumers. Every thing we do is based upon this commitment, which has been and continues to be our path to long-term success. I'll now turn the call over to Lainie.