Why Rockstar’s Agent Will Forever Be a Mystery

The Elusive Spy Game That Never Was

Remember Agent? No? Well, that’s not surprising! This little nugget of spy gaming goodness was first teased by Rockstar back in 2007, and then formally announced in 2009. Picture this: an open-world espionage game that’s basically a GTA-themed James Bond adventure. I mean, who wouldn’t want a game where cars can transform into submarines? Sounds like a wild ride, right?

But then, poof! It vanished into thin air after bouncing around various Rockstar studios like a pinball in a machine. After years of speculation, its silence was finally broken in 2021 when Rockstar confirmed that Agent was, in fact, dead and gone. Talk about a gut punch for gamers everywhere!

Dan Houser Spills the Beans

Recently, Dan Houser, the co-founder of Rockstar, had a candid chat on the Lex Fridman podcast about everything from GTA to Red Dead Redemption, and yes, Agent came up. It turns out, Agent had undergone about five different versions! That’s right, five! But despite all that effort, Houser concluded, “I don’t think it works. Sometimes I lie in bed just thinking about it.” Maybe he’s just trying to figure out how a game about spies can actually work.

Let’s be real for a sec: when you think of spy movies—like The Ipcress File or the latest Mission Impossible—there’s a serious vibe going on. Agents are on a tight mission, darting from one explosive moment to another, while GTA lives in a world of chaos where you can just hang out and do whatever mischief you desire. Houser points out the difference in pacing: “Those films are frantic, and there’s always this urgent push to save the world, but in open-world games, it’s more about doing things at your own pace.” So, basically, Agent was trying to fit a square peg in a round hole!

According to Houser, the open-world formula they nailed with gangsters and cowboys just didn’t fit the spy genre. Authenticity is key in the espionage world, and you can’t really have characters running around doing whatever while simultaneously trying to dodge laser beams and save the world. It’s like trying to juggle flaming swords while riding a unicycle—impressive in theory, but reality? Not so much.

For a bit of fun, the missions in the old GTA London games where you play as a quirky character inspired by Austin Powers might be the closest thing we have to a Rockstar spy game to date. Meanwhile, everyone’s eagerly anticipating IO Interactive’s 007: First Light, which looks to offer more traditional mission-based gameplay. Mark your calendars for its release on March 27, 2026, folks!

In a weird way, maybe Agent’s legacy lives on through these attempts to mix spy thrills with open-world antics. Who knows? One day, Rockstar might crack the code. Until then, we’ll just have to keep dreaming (and lying in bed) about what could have been!