Houser: Rockstar's open-world spy game never worked
The Rockstar co-founder told IGN that several teams tried to build the spy title and none could make it work, so it was never released.
Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser said the studio tried to build an open-world spy game with two or three different teams and could not get it right, which is why the project never came out. Houser made the comments in an interview with IGN, as reported by gamesradar.com.
According to Houser, Rockstar eventually concluded that the open-world spy game was not a game it would ever figure out how to make.
He pointed to a mismatch between spy stories and open-world design. A spy narrative, he said, pushes forward in time, while games want to be more spread out, and moving from one location to a very distant one does not really work in an open-world game.
The project is widely associated with Agent, the open-world stealth game Rockstar announced in 2009, set during the 1970s Cold War and planned as a PlayStation 3 exclusive. The title was formally announced at E3 2009 after years of rumours and teases.
Rockstar never properly announced the game's cancellation, but it eventually abandoned the trademark and quietly moved on.
Quick answers
Did Rockstar ever release its open-world spy game?
No. Dan Houser said the studio tried with two or three different teams and could not get it right, so the game never came out.
Why did the spy game not work as an open-world title?
Houser said the momentum of a spy story pushes forward in time while games want to be more spread out, and that moving from one location to a very distant one does not really work in an open-world game.
When was the spy game announced?
Rockstar announced its open-world spy game in 2009, planned as a PlayStation 3 exclusive.