Grand Theft Auto V has made more than $800 million (£497 million) within the first 24 hours of its worldwide release.

Take-Two Interactive Software, the owner of Rockstar Games, which is the publisher behind the Grand Theft Auto series, announced that Grand Theft Auto V delivered the "highest first day retail sales of any title in the history of the company".

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has also forecasted that 14 million copies of the game could sell by the end of September, which means sales might reach as much as $900 million.

Released on 17 September for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, the title landed worldwide except for Japan and Brazil. The controversial crime sim game was one of the most anticipated releases of autumn (maybe even the year), and its sales numbers show just how eager people were to play.

Part of the hype likely stems from reactions to the game's exorbitant $266 million budget as well as reviews. Pocket-lint gave the game 5 stars, and it also has a perfect score on Metacritic.

“We are incredibly proud of Rockstar Games’ creative achievement and could not be more pleased with the success of this launch,” said Strauss Zelnick, chief executive officer of Take-Two, in a statement.

Review: Grand Theft Auto V review

By the way, for comparison, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 sold only $500 million within its first 24 hours. And, if you look at sales figures for the top-grossing blockbusters during their opening weekend in the US, The Avengers and Iron Man 3 respectively scored $207 million and $174 million. These films also had budgets above the $200 million mark.

Of course, according to BoxOffice Mojo, Iron Man 3 has since grossed over $409 million domestically and $805 million in foreign markets. Still, the numbers speak loud and clear: Grand Theft Auto V is a resounding success for Take-Two and Rockstar Games.

Video games have now reached an era where they trump Hollywood and bring in close to $1 billion in one day (hence why Hollywood and game studios have been pairing up of late).