#484 – Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming

Bullish:

• $GAMING - Gaming has surpassed other entertainment mediums and is still in its early stages with massive untapped potential for growth and innovation

  • “I think the games can get so much better. They can feel so much more alive... it still feels like it's only just beginning.”

    Dan·2:49:12

  • “Games are the coming medium... we spent twenty years saying games of the future, games of the future, and being sneered at, then being laughed at... and then it kinda happening.”

    Dan·1:21:35
• $TTWO - GTA 6 is highly anticipated and expected to sell extremely well due to massive pent-up demand

  • “I would assume it [GTA 6] will sell really well. That was never my definition of success, but you certainly wanted to make money... I would assume it will because it's so anticipated, and anticipation is the best driver of early sales.”

    Dan·1:19:20
• $SINGLEPLAYER - Strong consumer demand exists for single-player gaming experiences despite industry trends toward multiplayer

  • “I think something a large part of the audience prefers. And I'd love to, with all of those, keep single player DLC one way or another going.”

    Dan·2:04:42

Bearish:

• $WRITERS - AI will commoditize basic writing and entry-level content creation, disrupting traditional writing careers while being unable to produce truly creative high-value content

  • “I don't think they're gonna come up with magic. I think they're gonna be fantastic at coming up with really cheap, decent stuff.”

    Dan·49:41
• $STEM - STEM education and careers may become less valuable as AI increasingly automates technical work

  • “I was advocating against the obsession that people had about four years ago with STEM subjects. And now AI is gonna make them more irrelevant anyway.”

    Dan·2:43:42