Gaming Red Dead Redemption

[Gavin]

[font="Tahoma"][size="2"]Spiritual successor to Rockstar's Red Dead Revolver released in 2004, Redemption places the player in the shoes of John Marston a partly reformed outlaw in turn of the century America obliged to bring law to the lawless.

One of the most eagerly awaited games of the year, it has been declared both a "tour de force" and a "masterpiece" by IGN, racking up an incredible 97% rating.

OK, shilling done. I'm eagerly awaiting my own copy of the game released on Friday and am wondering if there are any fellow OBers eager to get their six-shooters on dive head-first into Rockstar's new western sandbox adventure ?[/size][/font] Edited June 2, 2010 by Gavin

[Brasil]

I will have my copy tomorrow. Though I turned out to be utterly disappointed by GTAIV, I'm very optimistic about Red Dead Redemption. Its a logical optimism, I think. GTAIV bugged me something fierce with its generally horrible characters (though Brucie was hilarious), meh writing (strange for a GTA game), horrible pacing, and side diversions that paled in comparison to Saints Row 2. I mean, seriously. Is playing darts or going bowling any real alternative to ATVing down a crowded city street, blowing up cars and lighting gasoline ablaze? hah

I expect the setting in RDR to make the gameplay much more palatable. Plus I hear there's poker to pass the time. And hogtying. And bull-wrangling...or at least attempted bull-wrangling. I've seen stories of guys getting thrown around, right through a saloon's doors thanks to the Euphoria engine.

[James]

[font=garamond]I've had Red Dead Redemption for the last week or so and I'm really loving it - and that's coming from someone who isn't really a fan of westerns at all.

It's very true to call this "GTA in the wild west", because that's precisely what it is. The entire structure of the game is vastly the same as GTA, with similar mission progression, maps and side quests.

Actually, side quests aren't quite the same - in GTA you'd generally have to either to a specific side quest (like vigilante) or you'd have to go and talk to a marker on your map to activate one. While that's still true in RDR, you'll also find that as you simply ride around on your horse, you will come across situations that just pop up manually. It could be a woman who was driving a wagon and was stopped by bandits, or it could be a lone farmer whose horse is freaking out because it's surrounded by coyotes. You can get involved, of course...or you can keep riding. You won't be penalized if you keep riding, but sometimes the rewards for helping are very worthwhile.

These kinds of seamless incidents really balance out the otherwise sparse nature of RDR's environment, which is obviously not nearly as busy or varied as the city in GTA IV. I almost thought the lack of variety in the scenery would bother me a lot, but really it didn't, simply because there's so much to do.

Somehow the little side quests and mini-games feel more natural in RDR, if only because RDR tends to give you more choices about how to approach a situation. You'll often find that the very person you're trying to save will die quite easily (and this may or may not have an effect on what you're doing at the time). You can also kill enemies and bounties or return them to the authorities alive - the latter is certainly more fun and challenging.

Interestingly, I actually think RDR offers a great potential model for future Zelda games. The horseback riding is fantastic and there were times where I could imagine this engine being used to great effect in Zelda, although that obviously can't happen.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll have more to say as I keep playing. So far though, so good. This is every bit as good as GTA IV and, depending on your perspective, it could be a whole lot better (which is a pretty big feat!)[/font]

[Gavin]

[font="Tahoma"][size="2"]Well, in the little over two weeks I've had the game I've powered through and completed the main storyline of the game and the vast majority of the side quests available (sitting somewhere around 92% completion) as well as partaking in the multiplayer side to the game and I have to say that Rockstar have really blown me away with this one. Like Alex I wasn't really all that impressed by GTA4 as it just didn't feel like a GTA game to me, especially after how solid San Andreas was by comparison, IV actually felt like a bit of a backwards step but RDR really rekindled my faith in Rockstar's ability to make excellent sandbox games.

Have to admit despite 50 something hours sunk into the game I've yet to fully master duelling, though I do love to kick back in [spoiler]Blackwater[/spoiler] and play some high stakes poker when I feel like taking it easy and soaking up the atmosphere for a while.[/size][/font]

[Chaos]

I got RDR after my roommate got it and I watched him play for a few hours. That was the most fun I've had just watching someone play a game since MGS4. Awesome game, about twenty-ish percent done at the moment. Just went over into Mexico in search of Billy. So far, everything about this game has meet expectations, if not surpassed them.

Except for the Fort Mercer mission. Far too easy if you consider the in-game lore about how fortified and dangerous it was supposed to be.

(I'm stuck playing it now, and UFC 10 is feeling neglected. If anyone wants to posse up online, I'm down for it usually. Send me a message and we'll hook up.)

[James]

[quote name='Chaos' date='06 June 2010 - 01:29 PM' timestamp='1275791380' post='694693']

Except for the Fort Mercer mission. Far too easy if you consider the in-game lore about how fortified and dangerous it was supposed to be.
[/quote]

[font="Palatino Linotype"]Agreed. I was really surprised when I got to the Fort Mercer mission recently - it was over so quickly!

I've now completed my first couple of missions in Mexico and so far I'm actually enjoying Mexico more. Although that might just be because I'm at a more advanced point in the game.

My only major criticism of this game at the moment is the general repetitiveness of it. It lacks the variety of something like GTA IV, which can at times be a little disappointing. But now after jumping in and out of mulitplayer a little bit, I'm starting to forget that complaint.
[/font]

[Gavin]

[font="Tahoma"][size="2"]Have to agree that it does lack some of the variety of missions offered by GTA, and how little interaction there is between Marston and other characters once their segment of the game is over. I was actually a little disappointed [spoiler]you can't steal that car in Blackwater[/spoiler] just for fun.

Never got too involved with the multiplayer (only at Level 23), although hopefully Outlaws to the End will bring some fun back to the experience. If you and Neil are interested James, myself and a few former OBers have a posse we run every once in a while.[/size][/font]

[James]

[font="Palatino Linotype"]Cool, well, my PS3 I.D. is [b]white-pikmin[/b] so feel free to add me if you like. Whenever I'm online I never see any other players! (Although admittedly I've only had a couple of online sessions so far).

And, going back to what you initially said about Marston, I agree with you. After spending so much time at MacFarlane's Ranch early on - and it becoming so much of Marston's motivation to get more deeply involved with the local people - it feels kind of strange to just leave it behind. I'm comfortable not using spoilers for that just because it's literally the first part of the game.

Also, again in comparison with GTA, Marston's motivation just seems a little flimsier than the set-up in GTA IV. The latter makes a lot more sense to me, maybe because it is so grey and not nearly as black-and-white as RDR. That's not really a criticism of RDR, so much as it's a compliment to GTA, haha.
[/font]

[Gavin]

[quote name='James' date='13 June 2010 - 04:55 PM' timestamp='1276444510' post='695176'][font="Palatino Linotype"]Cool, well, my PS3 I.D. is [b]white-pikmin[/b] so feel free to add me if you like. Whenever I'm online I never see any other players! (Although admittedly I've only had a couple of online sessions so far).[/font][/quote]

[font="Tahoma"][size="2"]Ah bugger, playing the game on the Xbox so I guess that's a no go then. Shame.[/size][/font]

[quote name='James' date='13 June 2010 - 04:55 PM' timestamp='1276444510' post='695176'][font="Palatino Linotype"]And, going back to what you initially said about Marston, I agree with you. After spending so much time at MacFarlane's Ranch early on - and it becoming so much of Marston's motivation to get more deeply involved with the local people - it feels kind of strange to just leave it behind. I'm comfortable not using spoilers for that just because it's literally the first part of the game.[/font][/quote]

[font="Tahoma"][size="2"]I actually figured that after [spoiler]you take over the game as Jack that you'd go back and see how things have changed over the last three years with all the characters you knew.[/spoiler] Bit of a shame only hearing about so many of them in the papers. Although if I never saw [spoiler]Irish, Reyes or West-Dickens[/spoiler] again I'd be happy.
[/size][/font]

[Treble]

I finished the game a while back, and it was a fantastic ride. It's definitely one of the more immersive games I've played in a while. The main missions does lack variety as they were mainly one big shootout to another, but all of the side stuff you could do in the game really makes it up for me. From hunting animals, to treasure hunting, to playing blackjack/poker, and completing weird but funny stranger missions all serve as nice little breaks from the main game.

Also, the free new Co-Op DLC called "Outlaws to the End" is coming out today. I'm looking forward to it as co-op is always more fun to me than the competitive side of things.

[eleanor]

I went into /v/ and got spoiled for the entire game. head/desk