Take Two has announced that over 13 million copies of Grand Theft Auto IV were shipped until now, and you’d be tempted to believe that it’s all great for the publishers, right? Well… apparently it’s not, since the company announced a $50 million loss during the last quarter of 2008, even though the sales were of more than $256 million. Pretty strange, right?

Take-Two said that higher marketing, legal fees and R&D costs led to the increased losses. GTA IV reached the 10 million mark after less than five months since launch, generating over $500 million in the first week following its release. Not enough in this world, it appears.

Not even with strong sales from Carnival Games, NBA 2K9 and Midnight Club: Los Angeles managed to add the necessary income for Take Two to post a profit. Maybe next quarter…