Dan Houser Explains Why Rockstar's Agent Was Never Released
Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser said multiple teams tried to build the PlayStation-exclusive spy game but could never make it work as an open-world title.
Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser has explained why the studio's PlayStation-exclusive spy game Agent was never released, telling IGN that Rockstar tried to build the project with two or three different teams but could not get it right.
Houser said the teams concluded Agent was not a game they were ever going to figure out how to make. He explained that the global travel that makes spy films like James Bond work does not translate into an open-world game experience.
According to Houser, the teams built great individual elements for Agent, but those pieces never came together in a full package.
Sony announced at E3 2009 that it was partnering with Rockstar on a PlayStation-exclusive spy game called Agent. That same year, then-Take-Two president Ben Feder told GameSpot that Agent was being positioned to be the next Grand Theft Auto.
Rockstar never gave Agent a release date, but it would have followed up 2008's Grand Theft Auto 4. In 2013, Rockstar North released GTA 5, the next game it led development on after GTA 4. The studio's next major release, Grand Theft Auto 6, is set for November 19, 2026.
Quick answers
Why was Rockstar's Agent canceled?
Dan Houser said Rockstar tried to make Agent with two or three different teams, but they could not get it right and concluded it was not a game they were ever going to figure out how to make.
What did Dan Houser say about spy movies and open-world games?
He said the global travel that makes spy movies like James Bond work does not translate into an open-world game experience.
When was Agent announced?
Sony announced at E3 2009 that it was partnering with Rockstar on a PlayStation-exclusive spy game called Agent.