Rockstar could function within EA - Houser
But are they "the kids in Lord of the Flies"?
Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser has said that he could function as a "much smaller fish in much bigger pond" were EA to acquire Take-Two.
Describing current EA chief executive John Riccitiello as "the real deal", Houser told the Wall Street Journal website that he's "not someone who has any kind of problem with that".
The WSJ went on to speculate that it might be difficult for Houser and others at Rockstar to fit in at EA because they're on 'star-caliber money' at the moment, while ubiquitous Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter described Houser and company as "the kids on the island in Lord of the Flies"; "Are they manageable? No one knows."
Houser also cleared up a few of the rumours about Rockstar's business practices and his own behaviour within the company. He denies he ever wielded a baseball bat in the office ("I would tell you if I did"), says any guns seen around the building were "good replicas" and describes revelations in a former online producer's blog about explosive arguments as "things I can't remember".
Houser, who lives in Broker - sorry, Brooklyn - described himself as "the most conservative guy you'll ever meet" and spoke of how he "fell in love" with the Brighton Beach area of New York, upon which the Russian-dominated Hove Beach in GTA IV is based. "I would just walk around and listen and look," he told the WSJ.
EA has set this Friday as the deadline for Take-Two investors to tender their shares for a possible takeover. If it does happen, the most interesting part of it will undoubtedly be how the resulting company handles Rockstar's integration - or doesn't.