Take-Two boss talks $40 tablet games

Retail prices for tablet games could be a reality according to Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick, who says he sees no reason why price points of up to $40 would not be feasible.

Speaking to Forbes, Zelnick began by discussing Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the iPhone, which he described as "creatively successful" but "At the price point for which we can sell on the iPhone, it is not going to be economically meaningful."

"What we intend to do is make something and sell it to millions and millions of people, and sell it at a high price. You don't want to spend lots and lots of money to make something you are going to sell to a small amount of people at a low price," he explained.

He was then asked specifically whether he would charge "$20, $30 or $40 for a tablet game", to which he replied: "I don't see why not."

"Tablets are ubiquitous. And tablets are a great game platform. And it's the right sized screen. And you use the tablet to have an engaging experience. So if all of that's true, I don't see why we wouldn't be able to sell a robust product for the same price point. The reason the price point is currently lower for an iPhone app is it is used for five minutes, and not for a hundred hours

"My take is that small screens will be used for a quick but interactive entertainment experience. Mid and large screens can be a robust and engaging entertainment experience. That's how my kids play games. When they're at home, they don't really play games on their desktops or tablets. They play games on the projection TV."

In the same interview Zelnick offered only uncommitted support for the Wii U but did confirm that, "you will see future Duke [Nukem] IP coming from this company."