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What Dan Houser thinks about video games

@dan-houser · 22 positions · 0 changes of mind

Co-founder of Rockstar Games, lead writer of the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption series, and founder of Absurd Ventures since leaving in 2020.

Dan Houser did not write this page.

We collected these quotes from things they published elsewhere, and every quote links to where it was said. They have no account here and have not endorsed this site. Quotes are word for word; the short line under each one is our own restatement, not their wording. Their own site. Is this you? Claim it or ask us to remove it. Or tell us what is wrong here.

10 dated positions, 2025, in their own words. Our reading of what Dan Houser has said — not written or endorsed by them.

  1. Our readingA comedy world cannot run on jokes alone: forty hours of humour needs story, heart and drama underneath it or it stops working.

    Their wordsI hope it’s got comedy, cynicism, heart, drama, and some amusing life lessons. Otherwise, you can’t just have jokes for 40 hours, it won’t work.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 1st of 22 in this recording

  3. Our readingWhat makes an open world captivating is the illusion that it was already running before you arrived and would carry on if you did nothing.

    Their wordsYou know, you were in, you were in these worlds, and you went there as a visitor, and they existed almost independent of you. It felt like when you turned up, the world was running. It didn’t feel like you’d started it.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 2nd of 22 in this recording

  5. Our readingA game is an equation between two personalities, the world's and the protagonist's, and the friction between them is where the experience comes from.

    Their wordsBecause I always thought that the games were kind of a mathematical equation. They were the personality of the world, you know, multiplied or divided by the personality of the protagonist.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 3rd of 22 in this recording

  7. Our readingA video game character has no inner life, so what they say is the only thing that can make a player know who they are.

    Their wordsAnd then how do they speak? You know, because fundamentally, it doesn’t really matter what’s going on in their head; they haven’t actually got one, but what they say is what’s going to make you realize who they are.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 4th of 22 in this recording

  9. Our readingAnticipation, not quality, is what drives a game's early sales.

    Their wordsI would assume it will because it’s so anticipated, and anticipation is the best driver of early sales, as we saw with GTA4 versus Red Dead Redemption one.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 11th of 22 in this recording

  11. Our readingGames and film are better at different kinds of story: a long discursive adventure belongs in a game, a short tight experience in a film.

    Their wordsYou know, I think, I think if you want a long, discursive adventure, a video game is better. If you want a short, tight experience, a film is better.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 12th of 22 in this recording

  13. Our readingNew intellectual property needs single-player games, because launching a multiplayer game on a world nobody knows yet is extremely hard.

    Their wordsLuckily, if you want to do what we’re forced to do and also what I want to do, which is make new IP, you need single-player games. You can launch a multiplayer game with new IP. It’s just extremely hard.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 13th of 22 in this recording

  15. Our readingA good open-world spy game may not be possible, because a spy story has to run against the clock and an open world needs the player free to wander.

    Their wordsBut as a spy, that doesn’t really work because you have to be against the clock. So I think for me, I’m, I question if you can even make a good open world spy game.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 14th of 22 in this recording

  17. Our readingFilm found its modern form by 1939 and has barely changed since; games are nowhere near that point and still have a long way to go.

    Their wordsBasically, a modern film is no different from a 1939 film. But with games, I still think we’ve got a long way to go.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 20th of 22 in this recording

  19. Our readingEvery generation of technology is supposed to make games cheaper and easier to build, and every time the result has been better and far more expensive games.

    Their wordsYou know, I’ve been in games for 29 years, and all the time, the piece of tech that’s going to make making games much easier and much cheaper is about to turn up, and all that’s happened is the games have got much better and way more expensive.

    ↗Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming | Lex Fridman Podcast #484youtube.com 21st of 22 in this recording