- Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser was featured in a new episode of the Lex Fridman podcast.
- The 51-year-old stated that he expects GTA 6 to beat its predecessor's sales figures.
- Houser claimed that anticipation is a major driver when it comes to early unit sales.
Ex-Rockstar head writer, Dan Houser, recently made an appearance on the Lex Fridman podcast, where he discussed his illustrious career and also had plenty to say about GTA 6. Now at Absurd Ventures, the 51-year-old confirmed that he didn’t write for Rockstar’s upcoming title in any capacity, but he did hint at his expectations for how the game will perform financially.
His comments come in the midst of intense speculation surrounding the release of a third trailer or the potential announcement of GTA 6 pre-orders. And while the podcast didn’t provide any new information on the game, it did offer an inside perspective from one of the chief creators on the IP.
Dan Houser Predicts GTA 6 Will Surpass GTA 5’s Launch
The subject of commercial performance came up after Houser was asked whether GTA 6 had the potential to top GTA 5’s record-breaking launch. For context, the 2013 release is still the highest-grossing media title in entertainment history, collecting $1 billion within just three days of its release.
In response, the Rockstar veteran stated, “I would assume it will (beat GTA 5’s launch records) because it’s anticipated, and anticipation is the best driver of early sales. We saw this GTA 4 versus Red Dead (2010).” He added, “That was never my definition of success, but you certainly wanted to make money. “
Accordingly to analysts, GTA 6 has the potential to dwarf its predecessor’s revenue, with forecasts predicting a $2 billion haul on release day. These same reports estimate that GTA 6 could amass $7.6 billion within 60 days, which, needless to say, is unheard of.
Houser offered some insight into GTA’s insane popularity, saying, “Because they (GTA games) don’t come out that regularly. And I think we did a really good job of constantly innovating within what the IP was. The games always felt different, you know, people have very strong feelings: ‘I like this one. I didn’t like that one as much,’ because they are pretty different.“
The game’s commercial potential will become clearer once the pre-order window lifts and estimates start rolling in. But Houser’s word of confidence only adds further credibility to the notion of GTA 6 being an absolute juggernaut.
What are you most excited to see in GTA 6? Be sure to let us know in the comments.
