Lost Ark publisher Smilegate has announced a publishing partnership with Absurd Ventures, the studio founded by former Grand Theft Auto Creative Director Dan Houser, for an upcoming AAA open-world sci-fi action-adventure game.
The title is set in Absurd Venture’s own A Better Paradise universe, which has gained its fair share of popularity already thanks to the hit audio fiction series titled A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath. After its debut at the top of Apple’s Fiction charts, a novelization is currently being worked on and is due to be released in October 2025.
Smilegate Announces Publishing Partnership With Absurd Ventures
The upcoming A Better Paradise video game is currently in early development, being written and creative directed by Dan Houser and his team, which also includes longtime collaborators Lazlow and Michael Unsworth.
Development is led by Greg Borrud, previously General Manager of Niantic and co-founder of Pandemic Studios. They are joined by members who have worked for high-profile developers such as Bungie, Treyarch, Insomniac, Riot, and more.
Prior to establishing its publishing partnership with Absurd Ventures for the A Better Paradise video game, Smilegate made an equity investment in Absurd Ventures back in 2024. It plans on following that up with a “full-scale investment” that includes development funding.
“We are thrilled to take on this new challenge in the global AAA game market alongside Dan Houser and Absurd. We are confident that the strong storytelling of the ABP universe combined with the development capabilities of the Absurd team will result in an outstanding title. We are a company with a developer-first DNA and truly understand what development studios need,” said Sung Joon-ho, Smilegate CEO.
“Through our partnership with Absurd, we will fully support the A Better Paradise game project and do our utmost to help create a new title that will be loved by players around the world. Smilegate will leverage its extensive experience and success in global markets to ensure the ABP project becomes a beloved success worldwide.”
“Absurd Ventures was set up to tell new and different kinds of stories, and to create what I hope are interesting and compelling original experiences,” stated Dan Houser, founder of Absurd Ventures.
“This new game is an opportunity to go somewhere entirely different and to take players on an entirely new adventure. I am excited to be going on this journey with the amazing team that we are building here at Absurd Ventures and am grateful that we are partnering with Smilegate who really understand and support our vision.”
No further details regarding the A Better Paradise video game were shared at this time, which isn’t all that surprising, given how it is still in early development.
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