Dan Houser, a co-founder of Rockstar Games and a pivotal creative force behind the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption series for over two decades, departed the company in 2020. Having since established his new venture, Absurd Ventures, Houser recently offered his perspective on the upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6 and shed light on the reasons Bully 2 never came to fruition.
Speaking at a panel during Los Angeles Comic Con, Houser addressed his feelings about Grand Theft Auto 6, noting its significance as the first installment in the long-running series developed without his direct input in decades.
Houser expressed his immense privilege in contributing to such a monumental franchise, acknowledging that after penning the narratives for ten or eleven previous titles, perhaps the gaming world had received ample Grand Theft Auto stories from him. He anticipated that the new game, featuring a fresh narrative and character roster not conceived by him, would be exciting and undoubtedly “great.”
Regarding the highly anticipated sequel to Bully, the 2006 boarding school-themed game, which Houser had previously expressed interest in, he attributed its cancellation to “bandwidth issues.” He elaborated that a small lead creative and senior leadership team simply lacks the capacity to pursue every desired project. He specifically noted the challenge of managing two projects concurrently with a limited team, constantly grappling with how to advance both effectively.
When asked to select a favorite title from his tenure at Rockstar, Houser found it challenging. However, he highlighted Red Dead Redemption 2 as “the best thing that I worked on” and the pinnacle of open-world storytelling, praising its thematic consistency and its ability to guide players through an emotional journey. He also counted Grand Theft Auto IV, Grand Theft Auto V, Bully, and the original Red Dead Redemption among his most cherished experiences at the studio.
Looking ahead, Houser`s next endeavor is a comic book miniseries titled American Caper, slated for release by Dark Horse Comics on November 12. Furthermore, Absurd Ventures is developing its inaugural video games: an untitled “open-world third-person comedy” and A Better Paradise, characterized as a “third-person dystopian tragedy.” Both projects are currently in their initial development stages.