Rockstar San Diego

Come Diventare Rockstar: Gli Houser e l'Evoluzione del Franchise Grand Theft Auto

This Italian-language review, published in the 2013 issue of Critical Notes, assesses David Kushner's 2012 book "Wanted: The Criminal History of Grand Theft Auto," which examines Rockstar Games and the Houser brothers, Sam and Dan, along with the broader development of the Grand Theft Auto franchise.

• The review assesses David Kushner's 2012 book "Wanted: The Criminal History of Grand Theft Auto," which examines Rockstar Games, the Houser brothers Sam and Dan, and the development of the GTA franchise, and argues it is an important text for video game studies despite its non-academic framing.
• Kushner's method relies on extensive interviews with Rockstar employees and people affected by the company, combined with primary written sources, and uses a novelistic, character-driven narrative rather than explicit authorial judgment.
• The book identifies two sides to Rockstar's ethos: an idealistic push for artistic freedom, mature realism, a distinctive New York-inflected brand identity, and guerrilla marketing, alongside harsh management, schedules of up to sixteen hours a day, favoritism, and a lawsuit from Rockstar San Diego workers.