Absurd Ventures LLC is an American

media Media may refer to: Communication * Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Interactive media, media that is inter ...

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

, and

video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...

company headquartered in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. The company was founded by

Dan Houser Daniel Houser (born November 1973) is an English video game writer and producer. He is one of the co-founders of Rockstar Games alongside his brother Sam Houser. He served as the head writer and vice president of creativity until his resignation ...

in February 2021. The company aims to create new

intellectual properties Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

across various mediums, including video games, live-action and animated television, film, fiction podcasts, books, and comic books.

History

After leaving

Rockstar Games Rockstar Games, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in New York City. The company was established in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, using the assets Take-Two had previously acquired from BMG Interactive. Foun ...

in 2020,

established Absurd Ventures to explore new creative avenues. Houser registered Absurd Ventures LLC in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

on February 17, 2021, and incorporated Absurd Ventures in Games in

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester, southwest of Sale, Greater Manchester, Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2021 United Kingdom ce ...

on June 23. He announced the company in June 2023, headquartered in

, emphasizing the company's mission to "create new universes and to tell great stories, wherever and however we can". Several other former Rockstar employees joined Absurd Ventures, including marketing executive Adam Tedman in 2022, producer

Lazlow Jones Jeffrey Crawford "Lazlow" Jones (born September 4, 1973) is an American writer, producer, director, voice actor, and radio personality. He is best known for his work with Rockstar Games, with which he has worked on the ''Grand Theft Auto'', '' ...

in June 2023, and writer Michael Unsworth in October. Wendy Smith, formerly of

Creative Artists Agency Creative Artists Agency, LLC (CAA) is an American talent and sports agency based in Los Angeles, California. With 1,800 employees in March 2016, it is regarded as an influential company in the talent agency business and manages numerous client ...

, joined the company as

chief operating officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...

in November.

Pandemic Studios Pandemic Studios, LLC was an American video game developer based in Westwood, Los Angeles. Andrew Goldman and Josh Resnick founded the studio in 1998 after leaving Activision. Pandemic Studios, alongside BioWare, was acquired in 2005 by Elevation ...

co-founder Greg Borrud is the company's head of games. In September 2024, Absurd Ventures expanded its operations by establishing a new studio named Absurd Marin, based in

San Rafael, California San Rafael ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Raphael (archangel), St. Raphael", ) is a city in and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of th ...

. This studio was formed by integrating members from the former

Ascendant Studios Ascendant Studios is an American video game developer based in San Rafael, California. It was founded by Bret Robbins and former Electronic Arts industry veterans in 2018. The studio developed ''Immortals of Aveum'' which was released in 2023. ...

team, known for their work on '' Immortals of Aveum''. Bret Robbins, the founder and game director of Ascendant Studios, was appointed as the head of Absurd Marin. The team, comprising approximately 20 developers from ''Immortals of Aveum'', is currently working on a story-driven action-adventure game based on an unannounced new intellectual property. In December 2024, Absurd Ventures secured a strategic investment from South Korean game development and publishing company

Smilegate Smilegate () is a South Korean video game company. It is headquartered in Pangyo, Seongnam, South Korea. It develops, publishes, and services online games on mobile and PC platforms. Established in South Korea in 2002, it is the creator of ''Cr ...

. In 2024, the company partnered with

QCode QCode (sometimes stylized as QCODE) is a podcast network and audio production studio based in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded by Rob Herting in 2018 as a partnership between the production company Automatik and the management fir ...

to release ''A Better Paradise'', an audio fiction series exploring themes of artificial intelligence and virtual reality. The series debuted at number one on

Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

's Fiction charts. In 2025, Absurd Ventures is set to release ''American Caper'', a comic book series set to introduce a crime-fiction universe. In January 2025, the company unveiled the "Absurdaverse", featuring a diverse mix of characters. This initiative includes animation projects and an upcoming story-driven action-comedy adventure game. It revealed its first novel, Houser's ''A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath'', in March; an adaptation of the audio series, it is set to be distributed by

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...

in 2025. A video game in the ''A Better Paradise'' universe is in development. Houser felt the serious tone of ''A Better Paradise'' made it suitable as an audio series, novel, television series, and video game, while the Absurdaverse was more suited to animation and a video game, and ''American Caper'' to a comic book and trade paperback. The company had approximately 50 employees across its two studios as of 2025.

Projects

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=https://bleedingcool.com/tv/a-better-paradise-rockstar-co-founder-dan-housers-podcast-gets-novel/ , title=''A Better Paradise'': Rockstar Co-Founder Dan Houser's Podcast Gets Novel , last=Tantimedh , first=Adi , work=

Bleeding Cool ''Bleeding Cool'' is an Internet news site, focusing on comics, television, film, board games, and video games. Owned by Avatar Press, it was launched by Rich Johnston in 2009. Avatar Press also publishes an associated magazine, also called ''B ...

, publisher=

Avatar Press Avatar Press is an independent American comic book publisher founded in 1996 by William A. Christensen, and based in Rantoul, Illinois. It was originally known for publishing bad girl comics, such as ''Pandora'', ''Hellina'', ''Lookers'', ''The ...

, date=March 2, 2025 , accessdate=March 17, 2025 , archive-date=March 2, 2025 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302202320/https://bleedingcool.com/tv/a-better-paradise-rockstar-co-founder-dan-housers-podcast-gets-novel/ , url-status=live {{cite web , url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/absurd-ventures-launches-new-studio-with-ascendant-studios-staff , title=Absurd Ventures launches new studio with Ascendant Studios staff , last=Dealessandri , first=Marie , work=

GamesIndustry.biz Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and ot ...

, publisher=

Gamer Network Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and ot ...

, date=September 13, 2024 , accessdate=March 12, 2025 {{cite web , url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/london-book-fair/article/97302-london-book-fair-2025-q-a-with-dan-houser-video-game-creator-turned-author.html , title=London Book Fair 2025: Q&A with Dan Houser, Video Game Creator Turned Author , last=Nawotka , first=Ed , work=

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

, date=March 11, 2025 , accessdate=March 17, 2025 , archive-date=March 14, 2025 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250314154611/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/london-book-fair/article/97302-london-book-fair-2025-q-a-with-dan-houser-video-game-creator-turned-author.html , url-status=live {{cite web , url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/rockstar-games-dan-houser-absurd-ventures-wendy-smith-coo-1235786397/ , title=Rockstar Games Co-Founder Dan Houser's Absurd Ventures Taps CAA Vet Wendy Smith as COO (EXCLUSIVE) , last=Maas , first=Jennifer , work=

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

, publisher=

Penske Media Corporation Penske Media Corporation (PMC ) is an American mass media, publishing, and information services company based in Los Angeles and New York City. It publishes more than 20 digital and print brands, including '' Variety'', ''Rolling Stone'', ''Wom ...

, date=November 10, 2023 , accessdate=March 12, 2025 {{cite web , url=https://venturebeat.com/games/how-gta-pioneer-dan-housers-absurd-ventures-will-make-great-worlds-with-strong-storytelling/ , title=How GTA pioneer Dan Houser's Absurd Ventures will make great worlds with strong storytelling , last=Takahashi , first=Dean , authorlink=Dean Takahashi , work=

VentureBeat ''VentureBeat'' is an American technology website headquartered in San Francisco, California. ''VentureBeat'' is a tech news source that publishes news, analysis, long-form features, interviews, and videos. The ''VentureBeat'' company was fou ...

, date=January 16, 2025 , accessdate=March 12, 2025 , archive-date=January 24, 2025 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250124081918/https://venturebeat.com/games/how-gta-pioneer-dan-housers-absurd-ventures-will-make-great-worlds-with-strong-storytelling/ , url-status=live {{cite web , url=https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/rockstar-co-founder-dan-houser-has-founded-a-new-studio/ , title=Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser has founded a new studio , first=Chris , last=Scullion , date=July 2, 2021 , website=

Video Games Chronicle ''Video Games Chronicle'' (''VGC'' is a British entertainment website covering video games published independently by 1981 Media. Led by editor-in-chief Andy Robinson, the team consists largely of former ''Computer and Video Games'' staff. Lau ...

, publisher=

, access-date=July 3, 2021 , archive-date=July 2, 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702094732/https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/rockstar-co-founder-dan-houser-has-founded-a-new-studio/ , url-status=live 2021 establishments in California American companies established in 2021 Comic book publishing companies of the United States Companies based in Santa Monica, California Podcasting companies Publishing companies based in California Publishing companies established in 2021 Video game companies established in 2021 Video game companies based in Greater Los Angeles Video game development companies