Rockstar Video games co-founder and Grand Theft Auto author and producer Dan Houser is difficult at work on a new recreation along with his new studio, Absurd Ventures. And we expect we all know a little extra about what that recreation seems to be like, together with its setting, which is a new sci-fi universe the studio is creating known as A Higher Paradise.
Houser introduced his new endeavor final 12 months, revealing that Absurd Ventures can be “constructing narrative worlds, creating characters, and writing tales for a various number of genres, with out regard to medium, to be produced for live-action and animation; video video games and different interactive content material; books, graphic novels, and scripted podcasts.”
The studio was seemingly based manner again in 2021, with Houser serving as co-founder and director.
Earlier this week, several outlets observed that latest job openings for Absurd Ventures have been on the lookout for builders on “an open world action-adventure recreation” it at present had in the cooker. One itemizing in specific specified “best-in-class fight” and “third-person motion throughout a number of recreation modes,” and requested builders accustomed to a mixture of each melee and capturing motion mechanics, “non-combat types of motion gameplay (driving, mounts, climbing, traversal, platforming, and so on),” Unreal Engine 4 or 5, and dealing with co-development companions.
Then, yesterday, Absurd Ventures individually introduced a launch date for its audio fiction sequence set in its new sci-fi universe, A Higher Paradise. The sequence launches on June 10 and can span 12 episodes, however buried in the discharge is the information that Absurd Ventures can be making video video games in the identical expanded universe. “Along with launching Quantity One of many A Higher Paradise audio sequence, Houser, Lazlow [Jones], and the Absurd Ventures staff are in varied levels of growth on a number of tasks set in the A Higher Paradise universe, together with further audio fiction seasons, in addition to tv and online game titles.”
Sounds an terrible lot like that is the universe for the brand new open world action-adventure recreation, proper? An insider supply affirmed our suspicions that this was the case, which suggests we will infer a little extra in regards to the new recreation. In response to the official web site, the universe is “set in the close to future” and follows “the ill-fated growth of an bold however addictive digital game-world venture led by inventor and psychologist, Dr. Mark Tyburn.”
Because the superior software program they developed started delivering sudden and disturbing outcomes, the staff fell aside underneath unusual circumstances and the venture was deserted. The sport world and the super-intelligence inside have been discarded, left dormant and undiscovered. Till now.
Admittedly, we will not say but how all this suits along with the transmedia franchise Houser and Absurd Ventures appears to be constructing. And we equally do not know the way it’s all related to the audio sequence — do we have to take heed to all 12 episodes to know this eventual recreation? Who is aware of!
For now, it is all hypothesis, however Houser has fairly the resume to again himself up right here. He was a author and/or producer for nearly each single Grand Theft Auto recreation, in addition to each Purple Lifeless Redemptions. And he was an govt producer on L.A. Noire, Max Payne 3, and a author on Bully. Houser resigned from Rockstar manner again in 2021, and appears to have been quietly cooking on this new sequence ever since. His brother and fellow Rockstar co-founder, Sam Houser, remains to be on the firm as its present president.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Obtained a story tip? Ship it to rvalentine@ign.com.