Rockstar Gives Bully 2 a Permanent Suspension

The 2006 game, Bully, may be an older and less technologically ambitious title, but it remains one of Rockstar’s most unique creations. For many fans, a sequel to the original game is still in high demand, as they want to see the studio revisit its distinctive setting. Given rumors of another installment over the years, what actually happened to the planned follow-up?

Bully 2 Sent to the Principal’s Office

The project known as Bully 2 was officially cancelled back in 2009, and Rockstar’s co-founder, Dan Houser, is finally providing a clear explanation for this decision. He attributes a simple lack of bandwidth within the company’s leadership to why the sequel was canceled. According to Houser, a small senior team could not manage all the desired projects at once. With earlier reports from former Rockstar New England employees coming out, this explanation behind the game’s cancellation makes more sense.

For up to eighteen months, Bully 2 was in active development until management terminated it. At that time, games like Max Payne 3 and Red Dead Redemption were of higher importance to the company. Due to this main priority, the developers were pulled from the Bully sequel to support those other major titles. Therefore, how much of that original vision was actually lost?

The team had ambitious goals for the sequel, which included a world where players could enter every single building. This specific feature never materialized, but some prototype technology did find a home in later games. For instance, Rockstar’s games like Red Dead Redemption 2 incorporated dynamically breaking glass and NPCs with memory of player actions into their gameplay mechanics.

The Project That Failed its Finals

Houser wound up leaving Rockstar in March 2020, but couldn’t escape these issues as his new company, Absurd Ventures, faces similar creative constraints. He noted that even managing two projects with a small team was difficult to pull off, echoing the very challenges that doomed Bully 2. With his new venture, Houser is currently developing two distinct narrative worlds called American Caper and A Better Paradise.

Interestingly, these projects are set to expand beyond just video games, unfolding across different forms of media. For example, American Caper will first launch as a graphic novel, with its first issue scheduled for a November release. By taking this multi-platform approach, will the launch successfully avoid similar bandwidth problems that plagued Rockstar?

It’s unknown whether this model allows for more consistent creative output. A universal challenge that makes game development difficult is the ability to manage ambitious ideas with limited resources. As both massive studios and smaller startups are impacted by these issues, the story of Bully 2 ultimately reveals how even highly desired projects can fall victim to simple logistical realities.