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Dan Houser

Daniel Houser (born November 1973) is an English video game writer and producer.[1] He is one of the co-founders of Rockstar Games alongside his brother Sam Houser. He served as the head writer and vice president of creativity[2] until his resignation in 2020. He founded Absurd Ventures in 2021, creating new intellectual properties across several mediums. Prior to his departure from the company, Houser was regarded as the primary creative driving force behind much of Rockstar's output.[3][4][5] First serving as the sole writer for Grand Theft Auto: London 1969 (1997), he went on to become the lead writer and creative director for most titles in the Grand Theft Auto series,[6][7] Red Dead Redemption (2010) and Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018), Bully (2006), Midnight Club: Los Angeles (2008), and Max Payne 3 (2012).

Early life

Daniel Houser was born in London[8] in November 1973, the son of actress Geraldine Moffat and solicitor and saxophonist Walter Houser (1934–2025).[9][10][11] He was educated at St Paul's School and the University of Oxford, studying geography.[7] Despite wanting to be musicians, both Houser and his brother Sam (alongside whom he would later co-found Rockstar Games) had a fascination with storytelling from a young age. Growing up near a video library in London, they watched many American crime and cult films and Spaghetti Westerns. Houser has stated that he is a fan of the film The Warriors;[12] Rockstar later released a video game adaptation of the film in 2005.[12]

Career

Early work and Rockstar Games

In 1995, Houser got a part-time job at BMG Interactive testing CD-ROMs; he became a full-time employee until 1996.[9][13] Dan and Sam later became interested in a video game being developed by DMA Design called Race'n'Chase after getting a preview of the game. The Housers signed Race'n'Chase to BMG Interactive as the publisher and changed the name of the game to Grand Theft Auto.[14] Following the sale of BMG Interactive to Take-Two in 1998, Houser and his brother moved with the company to New York, where they founded Rockstar Games.[9] He has cited the 3D Mario and Zelda games on the Nintendo 64 as influences on his work.[15]

Houser has been credited as a writer for twelve Grand Theft Auto titles and a producer for six.[16] Despite the high profile of the Grand Theft Auto series, Houser and his brother have shied away from the celebrity spotlight, preferring to focus on the Rockstar Games brand rather than giving any one person the credit for the games' success.[17] In 2009, both Dan and Sam Houser appeared in Time magazine's 100 most influential people of 2009 list.[18]

Houser and his brother were inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences's Hall of Fame in 2014.[19]

Departure from Rockstar and founding of Absurd Ventures

In February 2020, Rockstar Games's parent company, Take-Two Interactive, announced Houser's resignation from Rockstar Games. He left Rockstar on 11 March 2020, following an extended break in 2019.[20][21] In February 2021, Houser registered two companies in Delaware: Absurd Ventures LLC and Absurd Ventures in Games LLC, the latter with a UK-based subsidiary in Altrincham. Houser is listed as the company's producer and creative director.[22] In June 2023, Houser officially announced his involvement in the studio, which he said will "create new universes" in video games, books, graphic novels, scripted podcasts, live-action, and animation.[23]

In November 2023, it was revealed that Lazlow Jones and Michael Unsworth had joined the company as executive producer and head of story, respectively.[24] The company also announced its first projects: a graphic novel called American Caper and an audio series called A Better Paradise.[25] In September 2024, Absurd Ventures announced the formation of Absurd Marin, made up of about 20 developers from Ascendant Studios, developers of Immortals of Aveum.[26]

In January 2025, Absurd Ventures released the logo and lineup of characters for the 'Absurdaverse', a new universe with animation and a "story-driven action-comedy adventure game."[27][28]

Houser has novelised A Better Paradise with the first volume published on October 14, 2025 accompanied by an audiobook edition on Audible.[29]

Other work

By September 2022, Houser joined the advisory board of Revolving Games, a blockchain game studio, after investing in a US$13.2 million funding round for the company;[30] Houser met co-founder Saad Zaeem some years earlier to explore ideas, but they ultimately chose different projects, leading Houser to become an adviser and investor instead.[31]

Personal life

Houser is married to entrepreneur Krystyna Jakubiak.[32][33] They previously lived in Truman Capote's former home in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of New York City, which they purchased for US$12.5 million, the most expensive home sale in Brooklyn's history.[34][35][36] In 2020, they purchased Conan O'Brien's former home in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.[37] They have three children and own a holiday lodge along Saranac Lake, New York, built in the 1920s.[33] Houser holds both British and American citizenship.[22] Houser, Sam, and their wives were directors of the Houser Foundation Inc. in New York,[38] founded in 2008; it was renamed the Krystyna and Dan Houser Foundation in 2024,[39] investing in organisations addressing poverty, hunger, homelessness, nature conservation, and access to education. Houser serves on the boards of the Rainforest Alliance[40] and Brooklyn Museum.[41][38]

Works

Video games

Others

External links

References

  1. Evan Narcisse. The Max Payne Comics Will Explain Why Rockstar's Hard-Boiled Cop Is So Messed-Up Kotaku, 3 May 2012, retrieved 17 September 2013^
  2. Silviu Stahie. Rockstar's Position on Critics Softpedia, 20 October 2005, retrieved 12 April 2007^
  3. Jen Glennon. Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser set to leave company in March 4 February 2020, retrieved 13 December 2023^
  4. Rion Duncan. How Dan Houser & Lazlow's Departure Will Change GTA 6 19 January 2021, retrieved 13 December 2023^
  5. Kyle Orland. Take Two stock dips as Rockstar scribe Dan Houser announces departure 5 February 2020, retrieved 13 December 2023^
  6. Chris Suellentrop. Americana at Its Most Felonious The New York Times, 9 November 2012, retrieved 18 February 2017^
  7. Matt Hill. Grand Theft Auto V: meet Dan Houser, architect of a gaming phenomenon The Guardian, 7 September 2013, retrieved 14 December 2016^
  8. 28. Sam and Dan Houser The Guardian, 19 July 2010, retrieved 17 September 2013^
  9. Ben Mckelvey. Meet The Brains Behind Grand Theft Auto Stuff.co.nz, 27 December 2012, retrieved 2 April 2013^
  10. Julian Gavaghan. Behind Grand Theft Auto V: The 'Rockstar' creators of gaming's cult hit Yahoo! News, 14 November 2012, retrieved 3 February 2013^
  11. Nigel Tully. Wally Houser obituary The Guardian, 10 August 2025, retrieved 3 November 2025^
  12. Seth Schiesel. Gangs of New York The New York Times, 16 October 2005, retrieved 18 February 2017^
  13. Kevin Gifford. Rockstar's Dan Houser: Big in Japan? 1Up.com, 26 October 2011, retrieved 8 April 2014^
  14. Rus McLaughlin, Lucas M. Thomas. The History of Grand Theft Auto IGN, 6 May 2013, retrieved 8 April 2014^
  15. Chris Suellentrop. Americana at Its Most Felonious The New York Times, 10 November 2012, retrieved 18 February 2017^
  16. Gerald Lynch. GTA 6 loses long-time writer and Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser TechRadar, 5 February 2020, retrieved 5 February 2020^
  17. Ryan P. Gaming Gods: Dan and Sam Houser The Gamer's Hub, 18 May 2012, retrieved 19 March 2013^
  18. Matt Selman. Sam and Dan Houser – The 2009 Time 100 Time, 30 April 2009, retrieved 19 March 2013^
  19. D.I.C.E Special Awards retrieved 22 January 2017^
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  26. Marie Dealessandri. Absurd Ventures launches new studio with Ascendant Studios staff GamesIndustry.biz, 2024-09-13, retrieved 2025-02-03^
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  28. Michael McWhertor. Rockstar Games co-founder teases his new game in absurd, Rockstar style Polygon, 2025-01-31, retrieved 2025-02-03^
  29. GTA And Red Dead Writer Dan Houser Wrote A Novel, And It's Available Now Gamespot, October 14, 2025, retrieved March 26, 2026^
  30. Tom Ivan. Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser invests in blockchain games studio, joins its advisory board Video Games Chronicle, Gamer Network, 12 September 2022, retrieved 14 September 2022^
  31. Dean Takahashi. Revolving Games raises $13.2M to make blockchain games with ex-Rockstar cofounder Dan Houser as an adviser VentureBeat, 9 September 2022, retrieved 14 September 2022^
  32. Lex Fridman. Transcript for Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming Lex Fridman, 31 October 2025^
  33. Jane Keltner de Valle. 'Step Inside This New York City Family's Ultimate Adirondacks Lodge Architectural Digest, 10 June 2020^
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  35. Matt Chaban. A Rockstar Record! Grand Theft Auto Creator Dan Houser Buys Truman Capote Mansion for $12.5 M. The New York Observer, Observer Media, 21 March 2012, retrieved 8 February 2020^
  36. Harold Goldberg. Criminal Mind Playboy, 15 November 2013, retrieved 7 February 2025^
  37. James McClain. 'Grand Theft Auto' Mastermind Dan Houser Skids Into $16.5 Million L.A. Estate Variety, 25 August 2020, retrieved 6 July 2021^
  38. The Foundation Directory Part 2 Foundation Center, 2016^
  39. The Krystyna and Dan Houser Foundation, Inc. OpenGovNY^
  40. Leadership Rainforest Alliance Rainforest Alliance^
  41. Board of Trustees Brooklyn Museum^
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  43. Smuggler's Run 2 - Hostile Territory (USA) videogamemanual.com, retrieved 27 March 2026^
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