In 2020, Dan Houser, a driving creative force behind the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption franchises, departed Rockstar Games after more than two decades. Since then, he has launched a new venture, Absurd Ventures. Recently, Houser shared his perspectives on the upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6 and shed light on why a sequel to the fan-favorite game, Bully, never saw completion.
During a panel discussion at Los Angeles Comic Con, Houser addressed his feelings about GTA 6, which marks the first major Grand Theft Auto title developed without his direct involvement. He stated, “I think it’s a great privilege to have worked on something that big—you know, I wrote the last 10 or 11 of them, so I think the world’s probably had enough GTA from me… There’s always a new story, so it’s not going to be a story that I wrote or a character set that I developed. I think it’s going to be exciting. The game will be great, I’m sure.”
Houser has previously expressed his desire for a follow-up to Bully, the 2006 title set in a boarding school. When asked why Bully 2 never materialized, Houser explained that “bandwidth issues” were a primary factor. He elaborated, “If you’ve got a small lead creative team and a small senior leadership crew, you just can’t do all the projects you want… With certainly how we’re structuring it, [we were] trying to do two projects with a very fairly small team, and just really trying to think through that. ‘How can we do that and keep them both moving?'” This suggests that resource allocation and a focused development approach for other projects ultimately sidelined a potential Bully sequel.
Reflecting on his extensive career at Rockstar, Houser found it challenging to pick a single favorite game. However, he did praise Red Dead Redemption 2 as “the best thing that I worked on [and the] best single kind of realization of open-world storytelling, thematic consistency, and understanding how the games are assembled to take you on an emotional journey.” He also highlighted Grand Theft Auto 4, Grand Theft Auto 5, Bully, and the original Red Dead Redemption as particularly memorable experiences from his time with the company.
Looking ahead, Houser’s new company, Absurd Ventures, is preparing its first projects. These include a comic book miniseries titled American Caper, set for release by Dark Horse Comics on November 12. Additionally, Absurd Ventures is developing two video games: an untitled “open-world third-person comedy” and “A Better Paradise,” which Houser described as a “third-person dystopian tragedy.” Both games are currently in early development. The article also featured an image gallery showcasing some of the best PC games to play in 2025.