Rockstar Co-Founder Dan Houser Reveals the Best Game He Ever Worked On

Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser, the writer down the studio's biggest franchises, has said Red Dead Redemption 2 is the champion video crippled helium ever worked on.

In an exclusive interrogation with IGN connected Saturday, September 27, astatine LA Comic Con, we asked Houser which of each the worlds and stories created by the workplace implicit the years inactive stood retired for him.

Houser, whose penning credits see the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption series, instantly replied: "Red Dead 2, I think, was the champion happening that I worked on. [It's] the champion azygous benignant of realization of open-world storytelling thematic consistency, and knowing however the games are assembled to instrumentality you connected an affectional journey."

Red Dead Redemption 2 launched successful 2018 and is wide considered 1 of the top video games of each time. We astatine IGN see it a masterpiece, with our Red Dead Redemption 2 reappraisal returning a 10/10. We said: "Red Dead Redemption 2 is simply a crippled of uncommon quality; a meticulously polished open-world ode to the outlaw era." Red Dead Redemption 2 has sold an unthinkable 77 cardinal units successful 7 years.

There's besides a peculiar spot successful Houser's bosom for the GTA bid too, of course.

"I besides deliberation GTA 4," helium added, "because we did effort and germinate however we did the storytelling and did it successful a cardinal way. I deliberation the mediate conception of GTA 5 is amazing. When we got the 3 characters working… I deliberation it was not flawless, but it was truthful smooth, that mediate section. I thought that was truly amazing. And past the extremity of Red Dead 1. Those are my favourite bits."

In the aforesaid interview, Houser besides explained wherefore we ne'er got Bully 2. "I deliberation it was conscionable bandwidth issues," Houser said. "You know, if you've got a tiny pb originative team, and a tiny elder enactment crew, you conscionable can't bash each the projects you want."

Houser is presently astatine Absurd Ventures, the institution helium started up aft leaving Rockstar Games successful 2020. His caller transgression fabrication comic series, American Caper, volition beryllium released connected November 12, 2025, with the archetypal arc comprising 12 issues. While we don't yet cognize what games the squad is moving on, we bash cognize that past September, a radical of astir 20 developers formerly of Ascendant Studios — including its erstwhile CEO — joined Houser's Absurd Ventures to signifier a caller workplace successful San Rafael, California: Absurd Marin.

Vikki Blake is simply a newsman for IGN, arsenic good arsenic a critic, columnist, and advisor with 15+ years acquisition moving with immoderate of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's besides a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her astatine BlueSky.