The Aging Wild West: Zach's Thoughts on Red Dead Redemption 2

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored nor endorsed by Rockstar Games or any other person, business, or organization. All views are the author's own.

Generally speaking, if there is one entertainment medium that I haven't written too much about, it is video games. Which is interesting, because they are one of the most accessible forms of entertainment to those everyone. It has been more so for the fact that I have not play that many marvelous games that warrant such a review.

In fact, prior to this post, there were three video game posts. But now there are four!

I never thought I would have played this game, but we thank the Steam Winter Sale, and my own winter break away from school, for the opportunity.

So, without further ado, after 50+ hours of gameplay, here are my thoughts on Red Dead Redemption 2.

Which is valid, since I didn't know anything about it until I started to play.

Red Dead Redemption 2 (developed by Rockstar Games, the developers of the Grand Theft Auto series, in 2018,) puts the player in the perspective of Arthur Morgan, a high-ranking enforcer and operative of the outlaw Van Der Linde Gang during the waning era of the Wild West in 1899 following a heist gone bad. Along the way, Morgan has to deal with local politics, bounty hunters, and law enforcement all eager to get their hands on his head.

As the game progresses, the gang finds itself moving all over its vast open world with livestock towns, to plantation outskirts, to large cities. No place is left untouched by the gang following their visit; and the opportunities are endless.

But not only are you committing robberies and theft, but also hunting, fishing, and many other activities. Alongside the Red Dead Online component, there are some people who simply spend their time in the game riding horses. (To that I say, sleigh away!)

The game came out in 2018 and is considered one of the best-selling video games in the world with over 75 million copies sold, and considered to be the epitome of gaming as an art form.

While I vaguely knew the game existed, I did not think much of it. However, in December, while browsing Steam, I stumbled upon its Winter Sale, and noticed that the game's ultimate edition, which is usually $100, was only $25 including tax. So I jumped on the purchase and got into the game. It started slow, but then picked up the pace. By the end, I didn't quite know what to do with myself. So I'm in progress of doing the whole story again but 100x slower. Enjoying all of the activities and features that the title has to offer.

So, what specifically makes this game great? Well…

Many games will only have one or two people be really fleshed out, and the rest be after-thoughts. Red Dead Redemption is the opposite. It relies on its massive cast to make the world big, and spares no effort to ensure that people understand the motives and stakes that were involved in this version of the Old West.

A major aspect of this is the Van Der Linde Gang. They aren't soulless outlaws necessarily, but people who fell in with the group of people and more or less accept their way of life. As the game progresses, you see their emotions and thoughts come into line as things don't turn out the way they think. Think: John Marston and a few other characters whose motives are much more murky than just "rob and murder innocent people for little reason."

Specifically, I'm going to highlight the main character, Arthur Morgan, who at first appears to be an outlaw with no other qualities. But as you go deeper, the dialogue and actions that the developers allow him to say and perform tell a more comphrehensive story that makes you almost root for him in that regard

Outside of the gang, the game's writers made it a duty it seems to have every single NPC encountered have enough dialogue to be memorable and play small but crucial roles. For instance,there's an NPC in one of the towns who you can have many conversations with over the course of the game, and all I'll say is that it's surprising how it turns out.

You'll encounter plenty of different factions of enemies over the course of the game. From private security companies to former slaveholder estates to hillbilly families, there's plenty of villainous NPCs written to complement the story, and world, albeit with the same gameplay idea of "shoot dead". But that's a given.

Red Dead Redemption 2's game map is estimated to be around 30 square miles, but it feels bigger due to the horse transit method. Within the game, you have towering mountains down to the coastal bayous to everything in between. Each area of the map offers something unique for the player to do.

While the game is primarily about the outlaw life, you can also hunt and fish with over two hundred animal species available to hunt, breed, collect, and so forth. They spared no expense, and it is evident with the massive amount of animal behavior and systems put into place.

But not only that, but the world itself is stunning. Considering how easy they could have made the space between the towns and missions to be dead, the opposite was created. The gang's moving camp allowed for life to come between different sections of the map without one overlooking the other. The graphics and textures are amazing, and I have heard of many people spending hours of gameplay not at the mission, but just taking in the world through riding their horse and doing other activities. If you manage to bring in such large demographics to enjoy your game, then you really hit the nail on the head.

Plus! When you're just in free roam, it's as if there's no rush. Many games have a "go-go-go" attitude, but you want to take your time with this game. Between the landscape and the activities, it's easy to get immersed in it all and about how there's actually a story at play.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is probably not the best introduction into AAA gaming for me for the sole reason of there are so few games like it out there. The game was in development for over eight years and thousands of developers working on it. Few games are at the level that Rockstar produces for their own. So we'll see what happens after I get bored of the game.

But I don't see myself getting bored. There's so many things to do in the game, that I'm not going to put it on the shelf anytime soon. It does what all video games are to do: to entertain.

If you have any interest in a Wild West game, fine with shooters, and want to go all in on a game, then Red Dead Redemption 2 is for you. I certainly enjoy it more than I thought I would have, and will likely continue to do so long after I start playing more. But for now, I'm just going to allow Arthur to ride his horse Jens off into the sunset.

I hope people enjoyed this post. I have garnered a love for the game and was excited to write all my thoughts out here. Plus, there aren't that many video game reviews. So I'm taking what I can to populate the section.

That's all I have for now. Another post will come soon hopefully, it all depends on my schedule.

Thank you, as always, for reading this post. Stay happy and healthy. See you soon!

PS. No, I have no plans to get Grand Theft Auto V or the upcoming Grand Theft Auto VI.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is available on Xbox, Playstation, and PC (Epic Games Store, Steam, and Rockstar Launcher Store).