Various versions of Agent never worked in the open world game format.
The spy action game Agent from Rockstar Games, announced many years ago, never made it to release. For many years, fans of the studio's work wondered what went wrong. Recently, an answer came from Dan Houser himself.
The Rockstar veteran spoke with Lex Friedman and touched on the topic of Agent during the podcast.
The creator said that Agent went through about 5 iterations, there were many setting options, including the Cold War (1970s), as well as modern times. The developers never even managed to make a full-fledged story. They made attempts to make the world work, but it was not possible to put such a spy story into the "open world" format.
According to Houser, such stories are more suitable for cinema. The open world works well with a criminal protagonist, not a spy, who must act against the clock:
And I think I know why [we couldn't make Agent]. You know, there are [spy] movies that are very, very frantic, [the action moves-moves-moves]. You have to go there and save the world. You need to go there and prevent this person from being killed, and then save the world. In open world games, there are moments when the story comes together, but for the most part [you are given freedom], and you just hang out and do what you want: "I want freedom. I want to go here and do what I want" [...] That's why [the open world concept] works well with a criminal hero, because, in fact, no one tells you what to do.
We tried to add agency through people who would draw you into the story. However, this does not work for a spy protagonist, because you have to act against the clock. So I doubt it is even possible to make a good open world spy game.
