Grand Theft Auto has always been caught between two competing ideas. On one side, players want total freedom to cause mayhem in an open city. On the other, they crave stories that make that chaos mean something. Dan Houser, who shaped Rockstar Games for over two decades, understood that both were essential.
"I think the open world is intrinsically pretty fun. It's just fun to be in a world and have complete freedom." Houser said in an interview with Lex Fridman. "At various points, people pushed for less story. But for me, story can be incredibly compelling and gives you structure."
That tension between freedom and storytelling has defined his work on the series. Some people wanted less narrative in GTA games, thinking it would interfere with the open-world experience. Houser disagreed, seeing story as the framework that gave players something to do and a reason to care about the world around them.
When GTA III launched, it changed what open-world games could be. The breakthrough wasn't just the size of Liberty City or the variety of crimes you could commit. It was that the world felt like it existed independently of the player. Houser described this as the simulation having a personality, something that made the game revolutionary.
"I think one of the reasons it was so captivating was also the idea of if I did nothing, the world still existed," he explained. "It felt like when you turned up, the world was running."
That sense of a living environment became central to every GTA title that followed. The radio stations gossiped about your crimes. NPCs went about their routines. The world reacted to you but didn't revolve around you. Houser called this experience being a "digital tourist," where you could explore without a specific goal in mind.
"You could just listen to the radio, look at billboards, talk to pedestrians," he said. "It was the idea of being in these worlds that existed almost independent of you."
This illusion of life was carefully constructed. Players were meant to feel like they'd dropped into a world that was already in motion, a place that existed before they arrived and would continue after they left. That's what made standing still in a GTA game feel different from standing still in other games.
However, Houser never believed pure freedom was enough. An open world without structure risks becoming overwhelming or meaningless. "Story gives you something to do, and it helps you from a game design perspective unlock the features."
The best moments in GTA happen when the open world and the narrative work together. Your choices feel spontaneous because the world allows them, but they carry weight because the story gives them context. Houser pointed to GTA IV as an example of this balance. Niko Bellic comes to Liberty City chasing a better life, only to find himself trapped in cycles of violence. The game lets you explore freely, but the story constantly reminds you that freedom has consequences.
This tension between structure and chaos isn't a flaw in the design. Houser saw it as the source of what makes GTA compelling. "I think story's very important and very powerful, and when you combine the two successfully, you get the best of both worlds. You know, there is a tension always there."
The friction between wanting to do whatever you want and following a narrative that challenges those impulses creates something more interesting than either element could achieve alone.
"The illusion that people found captivating," he said, "was, 'I'm in a world that both doesn't exist and does exist.'"
GTA cities are obviously exaggerated versions of real places, filled with absurd characters and over-the-top situations. But the way those cities function, the rhythms of traffic and crime and daily routines, mirrors reality closely enough to feel convincing.
That's the core of what made Houser's work on GTA distinct. The games are remembered for heists, explosions, and dark humor, but their lasting impact comes from creating cities that feel truly alive. Even when you stop playing, the world continues in your imagination.
