Dan Houser Confirms He Did Not Write GTA VI
Speaking at LA Comic Con, Rockstar co-founder and long-time lead writer Dan Houser confirmed he had no hand in Grand Theft Auto VI's story - the clearest on-record sign yet that a new writing team is steering the series.
The comment
At LA Comic Con on September 29, 2025, Dan Houser - Rockstar co-founder and the writer behind the modern GTA era - confirmed he had no involvement in Grand Theft Auto VI. In remarks picked up by IGN, GamesRadar, TechRadar and ScreenRant, Houser said the game is "not going to be a story that I wrote or a character set that I developed," while adding: "It will be exciting. It will be great."
His stated reason was straightforward: "I wrote the last 10 or 11 of them, [so] I think the world's probably had enough GTA from me." This is reported commentary from Houser himself, corroborated across at least four outlets.
Context: Houser's departure
Houser left Rockstar in 2020 after helping define the studio's narrative voice across GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas, GTA IV, Red Dead Redemption, GTA V and Red Dead Redemption 2. He has since founded Absurd Ventures, a separate storytelling company working across games and other media.
Because of that history, his absence from GTA VI is one of the more consequential behind-the-scenes facts about the project. It confirms that the game's writing is the work of a new team at Rockstar rather than a continuation under Houser's pen.
What it means for the story
Houser's comment does not reveal anything about GTA VI's plot, and it should not be read as either praise or criticism of the finished script - he was explicit that he has not worked on it. What it establishes is authorship: the story of Jason and Lucia, set in a modern Vice City, comes from Rockstar's current narrative staff.
For a series whose tone and satire have been closely associated with one writer for two decades, that is a meaningful generational handoff, and it will be a point of interest whenever more of the game's story is officially shown.
How to read it
This is a rare on-record statement from a figure who almost never discusses Rockstar's current work, which is why it drew wide coverage. It is worth stressing what the remark is not: it is not a Rockstar statement, not a comment on quality, and not a leak about the plot. Houser was speaking about his own non-involvement, and framed the game's prospects positively.
Any reporting that spun his words into insider detail about GTA VI's narrative went beyond what he actually said. Treated plainly, the takeaway is simple and confirmed by Houser: the Houser era of GTA writing is over, and GTA VI belongs to a new team.