Following his departure from Rockstar Games in 2021, co-founder and former vice-president Dan Houser—celebrated for shaping the narratives of Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead and beyond—unveiled Absurd Ventures. After debuting the studio’s signature franchises last year, 2025 will expand their creative horizons with a suite of new offerings.
Book
A year has passed since the narrative podcast A Better Paradise made its premiere with twelve hour-long episodes, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music.
Now, the story—charting the troubled creation of a video game in the near future—arrives in print. Titled A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath, Dan Houser’s book will be released on October 14, with hardcover copies priced at $29 and e-books at $15. Pre-orders are available via Amazon, Target and Bookshop.org. Judging by its subtitle and the podcast’s episodic structure, more chapters lie ahead…
Comic
The world of American Caper will debut on November 12, when the first issue—launching a twelve-part series authored by Dan Houser Jr. alongside veteran Rockstar scribe Laszlo—arrives in stores. During its recent reveal, Laszlo was asked whether he’d cameo in GTA 6, to which he offered a playful shrug.
Behind the scenes, nearly a dozen artists, colorists and letterers have collaborated to bring the comic’s visuals and typography to life. Published by Dark Horse Comics—third in market share after Marvel and DC—it will retail for $5 at specialty shops across the United States.
Set in the small town of Verona, Wyoming, the series follows a cast of American archetypes: a high-stakes attorney, a devout assassin, a staunch homemaker, a fugitive beauty queen, a Wall Street–turned–cowboy billionaire and a vengeance-obsessed madman.
Video Games
The first interactive venture, Aburdaverse, already has its own section on the official Absurd Ventures site, proclaiming “First stories launching in 2025.” These will initially premiere as animated chapters.
The second project is an AAA open-world sci-fi action-adventure set within the A Better Paradise universe. South Korea’s Smilegate—an early backer of Absurd Ventures—will finance and publish this flagship title.
Source: gta.com.ua