Take-Two have offered a public response to EA's rebuffed two billion USD attempt, describing the approach as "inadequate" and "opportunistic".

The maker has suffered a number of problems over the last 12 months, and while believe the offer is a good deal for shareholders, CEO Strauss Zelnick disagrees, stating that the offer is designed to take advantage of April's IV launch.

"We believe EA's unsolicited offer is highly opportunistic and is attempting to take advantage of our upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto IV, one of the most valuable and durable franchises in the industry," responded Take-Two in a new statement.

"Electronic Arts' proposal provides insufficient value to our shareholders and comes at absolutely the wrong time given the crucial initiatives underway at the Company.

"In addition to undervaluing key elements of our business, EA's proposal fails to recognise the value we are building through our ongoing turnaround efforts, which will further revitalise Take-Two."

Take-Two's response does however suggest discussions take place following the launch of GTA IV on April 29th.

"We believe this offer demonstrated our commitment to pursuing all avenues to maximise stockholder value, while we believe that EA's refusal to entertain this path is evidence of their desire to acquire Take-Two at a significant discount, whereas we believe this value rightly belongs to our stockholders," concluded Zelnick.

EA should have more news on all this later. Take-Two shares were up 50% in early trading.

By Luke Guttridge