Was it any surprise that Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) beat expectations for the second quarter? Not a chance. That's because Grand Theft Auto IV stole a lot of hardcore-gamer hearts when it made its eagerly anticipated debut back in April. Net revenues more than doubled to nearly $540 million in Q2, and adjusted net income came in at $1.52 per share. Briefing.com says that the bottom-line results were $0.39 ahead of analyst expectations. Again, we saw this coming.

Take-Two opened Grand Theft Auto IV on the Sony Corporation (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) Xbox 360 platforms with excellent fanfare and brilliant marketing, taking full advantage of the brand equity intrinsic to the title. An impressive 8.5 million discs of the title have been sold so far. Job well done. Plus, BioShock is coming to PlayStation 3 later this year. That's going to be a major franchise in the years to come.

Yet, I will not buy the stock. With the arbitrage battle surrounding Take-Two and its takeover dance with Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS), I simply am discouraged from stepping in and adding the company to my portfolio. I owned Take-Two at one time, but I'm not interested in getting back in. Besides, the news is out on Grand Theft Auto, so who knows if this would have been much of a trade right now, even if the EA deal wasn't on the table. Great quarter, excellent future guidance, but I just don't see the value of playing the buyout-game here.

Disclosure: I don't own any of these companies, but positions can change at any time.