Nobody has talked about this game on here so I thought I'd start a topic for it. I got Red Dead Redemption 2 back around Christmas and I still haven't put it down. The followup to Rockstar's western epic is truly something special to behold.
First, the nonspoiler stuff.
The open world is by far the best I've ever seen and I'm continually amazed by the detail and realism Rockstar put into it. Many sandbox games promise a living, breathing world but this is the first time I've seen one truly deliver.
1. The animal behavior is amazingly realistic. One of my chief complaints about the first game was that animals didn't behave realistically. Bears, wolves, and cougars were always hostile no matter what and they were far too common. This
This time around, bears, wolves, and cougars are far less common, which makes enjoying the wilderness a little easier. When they do appear, they only attack if you get close to them and will otherwise ignore you. I once found a bear eating a dead deer and instead of attacking me, the bear stood up on his back legs and roared at me until I backed away. THen he went back to eating the deer.
I was fishing by a lake and there was a bald eagle sitting on a rock. He sat there for several minutes before suddenly diving toward the water and catching a fish. Here are some other spectacular examples of animal behavior in this game.
The aforementioned eagle catching a fish.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQleMOK0mU4Grizzly bear vs wolves. Somewhat ruined by the fact that the idiot filming decided to attack the bear for no reason.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irqi3wsdEUE2. The open world is so diverse and beautiful, ranging from snowy mountains to dry deserts and lush forests. I'd have to say West Elizabeth and Ambarino are the prettiest states in the game. The map is about three times the size of the map from the first game.
3. The gameplay mechanics. You have to eat and sleep to maintain your cores, hunting and gathering plants have been vastly expanded, outfits can now be crafted and customized to some extent, horse interactions have been expanded, etc. It would be hard to go back and play the first game again after getting used to all the new features in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Now for the spoiler stuff: You've been warned.
1. The story and characters are incredible. With more than 60 hours worth of story missions and another 40 hours worth of side activities, this is b far the longest game I've ever played. I've been playing this game since Christmas and I'm still finding unique character interactions in camp. If you rush through the story as fast as possible, you miss out on so much good stuff.
Dutch van der Lind is the best antagonist Rockstar has ever created and his descent into madness is heartbreaking, but very well done.
Micah Bell is by bar the most vile and unlikable video game character I've ever encounter. Where do I even begin with this guy? He's a racist jerk right from the start, sexually harasses the women in camp, bullies everyone including 4-year-old Jack Marston, an early mission involves him shooting up an entire town, forcing Arthur to go along with it and leading to Arthur getting a $300 bounty and taking nearly every penny the player has earned up until this point to pay off, the fact hat he ultimately betrayed the gang, his endless mocking Arthur's tuberculosis... the list goes on. Oh, and he killed Jack's dog and taunted Jack about it. Can't forget that. I wanted to kill him the moment he first appeared on screen. I didn't feel any satisfaction about killing Ross in the first game, but Micah? It really felt good to finally get to shoot him full of holes.
Arthur Morgan is the best game protagonist I've ever seen. His character development over the course of the story is unrivaled. That's all I'm gonna say.
It's nice to see John Marston again. takes a while for him to evolve into the character we knew from the first game though but his development is handled well.
4. This one has some massive spoilers!
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Arthur Morgan's story isn't just amazingly written, it's a tearjerker guaranteed to make you cry. There are a LOT of tearjerker-worthy moments but highlights include Arthur's conversation with the nun toward the end where he tells her he's dying and he's afraid, Arthur talking to Rains Fall about his family being murdered, and the entire mission "Red Dead Redemption", the final mission of Arthur's story. The entire mission is basically 30 minutes of the game relentlessly punching you in the feels again and again. Arthur's goodbye to Tilly and giving her all his money, his goodbyes to Abigail, Sadie, and Jack, his last ride back to camp while "That's the Way It Is" plays in the background, reflecting on the life he's lead, Arthur whispering "thank you" to his dying horse, his goodbye to John and staying behind to cover John's escape, and finally, Arthur passes away at peace with himself. An incredibly emotional sendoff to the most amazing, complex, and well-written video game character ever. I literally had to stop playing for a bit after that.
5. The side missions are really good. Especially the ones in Chapter 6. They may be optional, but you miss out on a lot if you don't play them as Arthur.
It took 8 years to get this epic masterpiece, but it was worth the wait. That's about all I'm gonna say for now. Anyone else played this masterpiece?
