Following the unabashed success of IV, AmTech analyst Ben Schachter tells Industry Gamers that the series has begun to show fatigue and may have reached its peak.

The relatively poor performance of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars on and (there's also an and iPod touch version in the works) could demonstrate a weakening of the brand. Two expansions on for GTA IV on - The Lost and the Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony - haven't been wild hits either.

"Given the strength of GTA IV in 2008, the question may seem misplaced, but our concern is that the very highly rated new GTA content for as well as PSP and DS did not perform up to expectations in 2009," Schachter says.

While its premature to predict the decline of the GTA empire, troubles with the most recent titles clearly point to a need for to rev up the franchise judiciously.

By Tracy Erickson

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  1. DM Unregistered 3 months ago

    You can' t judge the GTA series based on a handheld game and downloadable content. When the next full fledged sequel is released, GTA 5 or whatever it is called we'll see huge sales numbers again.