'You Just Can't Do All the Projects You Want' — Rockstar Co-Founder Dan Houser Says Bully 2 Didn't Happen Due to 'Bandwidth Issues'

Dan Houser, Rockstar Games co-founder and the writer down the studio's biggest games, including the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption series, has said Bully 2 didn't hap due to the fact that of "bandwidth issues."

Bully was a humorous enactment crippled that enactment players successful the relation of precocious schoolhouse outcast Jimmy portion attending a pretentious backstage school. "Bully is simply a great, well-crafted enactment crippled that's been made adjacent stronger with 1 of the champion senses of wit around," IGN's Bully reappraisal read. Expect dozens and dozens of hours of fun."

Fans person long-called for a sequel, which was erstwhile successful improvement astatine Rockstar’s New England workplace successful the precocious 2000s. While Bully 2 was evidently ne'er released, immoderate of its ideas made it into different Rockstar games similar Red Dead Redemption 2.

In an exclusive interrogation with IGN connected Saturday, September 27 astatine LA Comic Con, we asked Houser wherefore we ne'er got a sequel to 2006 fan-favorite Bully (also known arsenic Canis Canem Edit). You tin ticker the afloat interrogation below:

"I deliberation it was conscionable bandwidth issues," Houser said. "You know, if you've got a tiny pb originative team, and a tiny elder enactment crew, you conscionable can't bash each the projects you want.

"And you know, we surely — however we're structured astatine [Houser's existent company] Absurd [Ventures], we're doing 2 projects with a reasonably tiny team, and it's truly trying to deliberation done that. How tin we bash that and support them some moving?"

Dataminers person unearthed bits and bobs astir Bully 2 implicit the years. In 2023, an alleged leak of a database record for Grand Theft Auto 5 was recovered to see notation to the unreleased Bully 2.

Houser established transmedia institution Absurd Ventures aft leaving Rockstar Games successful 2020. His caller transgression fabrication comic series, American Caper, volition beryllium released connected November 12, 2025, with the archetypal arc comprising 12 issues.

This clip past year, a radical of astir 20 developers formerly of Ascendant Studios — including its erstwhile CEO — joined Houser's Absurd Ventures to signifier a caller workplace successful San Rafael, California: Absurd Marin. However, we don't, arsenic yet, person immoderate further details connected the games presently successful development.

Vikki Blake is simply a newsman for IGN, arsenic good arsenic a critic, columnist, and advisor with 15+ years acquisition moving with immoderate of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's besides a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her astatine BlueSky.