Eight days after 
letting the world know “Grand Theft Auto V” was on the way, Rockstar Games has given us our first look at the title – and it looks like fans of the series will be pretty happy with what the studio has been working on.
The game, set in a Los Angeles clone (Santa Monica is dubbed Pleasure Pier and Hollywood becomes Vinewood), seems set in a modern era, with homelessness and foreclosures highlighted.
Shares of Take-Two 
Interactive Software surged Tuesday as the company confirmed the long-rumored next installment in its hit “Grand Theft Auto” series is on the way.
The logo for “Grand Theft Auto V” festooned the Website of Rockstar Games, the developer of the series, teasing a Nov. 2 release for the first trailer for the game. And despite the lack of a release date, plot information or any other details about the title, the publisher’s stock was up nearly 7 percent in midday trading.
[Speaking with Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris 
Morris about the road ahead for his company, CEO Strauss Zelnick explains why he’s in no hurry to sell Take Two, and why the publisher isn’t taking part in the social game land grab.]
The turnaround story at Take-Two Interactive Software has been an impressive one over the past couple of years. The company, which had previously never posted a profit unless it had released a Grand Theft Auto title in its lineup that year, has managed to push into the black without the help of its biggest franchise and had several of the most anticipated games of 2011 and 2012 on display at its E3 booth this year.
But the success has once again kicked up chatter that the company might be in play. Analysts have speculated it is an acquisition target and, with activist investor Carl Icahn holding a big stake in the company, have begun openly wondering who will make the first bid.
Chris Morris: Journalist 