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Please ignore the reviewer that stated (repeatedly) that "this game is just like GTA IV... If you hated that you will definitely hate this." That could not be further from the truth!!
Red Dead Redemption is Rockstar's newest sandbox game, and it is a very good change up on the already popular GTA series. Let me start off by saying I have always been a huge fan of GTA games... until GTA IV. Tried and tried to play it, just could not get into it. Everything about it was wrong for me, and I know a lot of others felt the same. Sure RDR is very similar to GTA IV, yet everything about it is so much better.
Graphics are amazing, game play is easy to pick up and hard to put down, shooting system is improved, horse riding is intuitive, and hunting is a blast, just to name a few. This is GTA on steroids. Don't get me wrong, the huge cities and fancy sports cars were a ton of fun, but this is so much better. Set in the early 20th century, Red Dead Redemption takes place in the ever changing Wild West. Dusty old towns, bustling saloons, and family ranches are presented with such accuracy and clarity, you'd think you are back in the old west yourself!
Red Dead Redemption's scale is beyond HUGE!! The Wild West has never looked so good. There's a fullness to the sunsets that's so breathtaking you almost forget about the task at hand. The characters play a role nearly as big as the landscape, if not more. The dialog is smooth and witty, and the hometown feel of McFarlanes ranch only adds to the beauty.
There are so many side missions and quests, it's tough to get bored. From helping a stranded women on the side of the road, to tracking and shooting trophy bucks, there is truly something for everyone. Don't feel like shooting or riding around on your horse? Play some cards! Drink a shot!
Your thinking what I'm thinking aren't you? GTA on horses. Yes, but as you play on through the game you will quickly realize it is so much more than that. It's a nice change up in the video game world, and quite a surprise in the western genre.
Now I know this was a very short, somewhat random review, but I hope it provided enough insight to help you decide on the purchase.
***********UPDATE**********
I have gotten a few comments about my review. Some feeling that I have not experienced all the game has to offer, and should wait until I'm further along and write a detailed review. My review was an attempt to give a quick firsthand look, and to knock dead a few misconceptions. I believe all first time buyers need an initial review to help them decide to buy it or not. The game experience should be left up to each individual.
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I'll admit, I had some reservations about Red Dead Redemption. The studio that released it (Rockstar) hadn't done too much to distinguish it from GTA with horses. Within the first 2 hours, however, I was blown away. The story starts with our hero John Marston attempting to track down his former gang leader Bill Williamson and bring him to justice. After a short cut scene, he's shot and left for dead. The game opens up after some dialogue and tutorials, leaving you to your devices in 1912's Texas and Mexico. The first thing you'll notice is the beautiful visuals. Everything has an incredible amount of detail and draw distance, and the character models animate wonderfully. Watching the sunset on horseback is a truly visceral video game experience, and won't soon be forgotten. Combat works in a very fun, gritty way. You have a large variety of period weapons to deal the bad guys (or good guys). Quests can appear by talking to certain NPCs essential to the story. They can also appear at random, forcing you to act quickly or watch an innocent die. What really surprised me was how well the minigames were made. Poker could be sold as a separate game in of itself, with AI "tells" and bluffing. Five-finger-fillet is pretty funny to watch if you make a blunder. Horseshoes and bar fights provide some enjoyable distractions. You can waltz over to a local movie theater and watch some very funny silent films that convey the mindset of the times. Red Dead Redemption has the most believable open world I've ever played, with every feature one would expect. The atmosphere is simply unmatched in terms of immersion and realism. I haven't even mentioned multiplayer yet. RDR supports up to 16 players over Xbox Live or PSN for full-on gunfights and skirmishes. Game types can range from free-for-alls to CTF-structured team based modes. There is also a separate mode called "Free Roam" that lets you and your friends form a posse and explore the entire single player map. You can slaughter gangs, hunt down wild game, and duke it out with other posses over an enormous map. There's a fully featured ranking system that tracks your progress throughout your online exploits. Multiplayer should keep you hooked for weeks on end as you shoot up the West. Overall, Read Dead Redemption is an incredibly good game that can't be missed. Pretty much everything is perfectly polished and consistent, and you'll find yourself loving the Wild West's final days. Go buy it now.PROS
+ Awesome, deep combat
+ Breathtaking visuals
+ Addictive multiplayer
+ Strong voice acting and writing
+ Best open world in a video game to date
Cons
Occasional animation glitches
Some network problems, especially in Free Roam
Could be a little more difficult
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Not many games am I willing to shell out 50 bucks to buy. I decided to go against my better judgement, and buy it because it had a pretty good reputation . . .IT ROCKS!!
I was a little nervous about it being in the old west because that wasn't something that sounded that interesting for a videogame. Believe me, I take it all back. It only takes 10-15 minutes from when you start until you're sucked in for good.
Not gonna lie: I'm not the best when it comes to some video games, and I'll admit that I may agree with others: The game can be a bit easy at times (Just warning those hardcore gamers who may say "Psh, way too easy!"). But there are so many things to do, and they are all so much fun thing to do that, in my opinion, who cares if it's a little easy.
Clearing up some issues I read from others:
Someone said that "It takes forevor to ride from town to town". Yes, this may sometimes be true, but you can hire a stagecoach for a small fee, OR set up camp in the wilderness and say "Travel to ________" for FREE! I prefer to ride from town to town because you may stumble into a group of deer you can hunt for money to purchase a new weapon or horse, or you may find an opportunity to help strangers to gain Fame and/or Honor.
Things to do:
Go on main missions, hunt, become a bounty hunter to bring back criminals (Dead or Alive! The choice is yours!), go on stranger side missions, help those in need on your way from town to town, Patrol the MacFarlane Ranch at night to stop any cattle thiefs/rustlers, be a cowboy (herd cattle), play a game of horseshoes/blackjack/poker/mumblypeg, go to the saloon for a drink (and walk out so drunk you can't stop falling), jump on a moving train and kill the "driver", look for treasure, clear out a gang headquarter, JUST PLAIN EXPLORE!! Over time you'll find what side hobbies you like, and do them to take a break from the storyline. I, personally, like to do a main mission or two, then do some stuff on the side to keep things different.
1 thing that is truly great: The scenery. Nothing beats riding around during sunrise or sunset when the sky is a mixture of purple, orange, and red. It's just great.
I really hope this review helped you make a decision about whether or not you'll purchase the game. Make sure you click yes if it did. ;) Happy travels
Honest reviews on Red Dead Redemption - Xbox 360
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Graphics9.5 Excellent details and textures, everything from the wool jackets, to the animal pelts you collect is highly detailed and gorgeous in HD. I did have a few hiccups and a freeze up during a cut scene, it happened one time, and could very well be my Xbox.
Sound10 The surround sound is top notch in Red Dead Revolver, from a steam engine barreling down the tracks, a cougar growling from the bushes, to the small things like birds chirping and wind blowing...the sound envelops you and keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Gameplay10 Excellent control setup (GTA vets will be right at home) the only thing that took a bit of getting used to was riding a horse, its not bad, just a bit different than a car in terms of handling. Plenty of story/mission hours to waste away, followed by double the hours you'll spend just exploring and causing havoc (or helping the kind settlers).
Re-playability-9 Just going home and being able to run around the Wild West is enough for me, Rockstar included a solid story, but you can make your own as you go, helping damsels in distress, or massacring an entire settlement, its all up to you. This is gonna be a great game for a bit of relaxation...or some stress relief.
Multi-player9.5 I only played a bit of MP, since the rest of my "posse" hadn't received the game yet (or were struggling to get one at the store) The premise seems really interesting though, and the game of death match I played was a real nice change from the normal FPS death matches I've been playing lately. The open world MP game has always been something I wanted to see more of, and I'm sure once this game gets into more peoples hands its gonna be a real treat for the gaming world.
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I've been a fan of the Grand Theft Auto series since it had a top down view, so when this was announced by Rockstar I was pretty interested.
The first thing I must say is Rockstar has really outdone themselves, this game takes GTA to the next level, while taking it back a hundred years on the time line. The first thing you notice is the vast area you get to call "home". The colors and sand blowing and swirling is truly beautiful eye candy. I hate to compare this game to GTA, but the undertones are all there.
I don't wanna share any of the story, and honestly that's icing on the cake for this game. The graphics are simply gorgeous, from the leather straps, and jackets, to the grizzly beards on the characters...all very well done. One thing I must say is not being in the big city setting is a breath of fresh air, no car horns blaring, police sirens at every corner, just the wide open Western range...at times I thought I could taste the fresh air.
As far as game play goes, its hard to beat. You can do anything, and I mean anything (*Ill give a example at the end of this) The stores and shops are fantastic, and walking into a new town just makes you feel like a real gunslinger! Again I don't wanna get into the story to much, but the voice acting and cut scenes are almost Hollywood movie grade, its always nice when you feel for the characters, and this game does an outstanding job of delving into their history and stories!
As another reviewer said the game takes about 20 hours to play through the main story, however getting 100% completion will take you some extra time. The problem is playing through the game, no matter how hard I tried to go to the next mission, I ended up going way off track, killing a bear, saving a stage coach, or just getting a bunch of horses together to test a dynamite stick on. No matter what path you choose, your in for a surprise...Red Dead Redemption really delivers.
If you haven't picked this gem up yet I would highly suggest it, I said I'd give an example of doing whatever you want and here it is: Find some poor townsfolk, give em a round from your six shooter in the kneecap, hogtie them, drag them behind your horse to the nearest railroad...and leave em on the track, sit back and wait for the train to come through, nothing better to relieve the stress of those long days at work/school.
Red Dead Redemption far exceeds anything you've played before, pick up this game, and I'll see you behind the saloon at high noon!
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Red Dead Redemption - Xbox 360
I heard about Red Dead Redemption just after it was released and was immediately intrigued. I saw here the potential to fix the flaws of GTAIV-the opportunity to take GTAIV and craft from it a more refined experience: a tighter storyline, improved controls, and a more focused world. The Western setting seemed perfect for the task. Not to mention the Western theme is, for some unknown reason, generally unused in video games. (I suspect that will now change.)In the end, RDR improves on some aspects of the GTAIV formula but falls short on a few other aspects.
The world is much more refined and focused in RDR. Almost all buildings can be entered. NPCs have genuine conversations with one another. In general the world is better. Most impressive is the way the developers simultaneously allow the player to take in the loneliness of the empty deserts while still making the world feel alive and inhabited. This is accomplished by adding in a lot of wildlife (all of which can be hunted; you can even go catch and tame wild horses!), a system that introduces the player to random but dynamic encounters (for instance, you may find while riding along a road in the middle of nowhere that a gang is lynching someone on a nearby tree; you can choose to save the person or move on), and the stranger system (these are NPCs marked with a special icon on the minimap who provide Marston with special tasks to complete--simple, nonessential missions).
The controls are still just as unresponsive as they were in GTAIV. When playing RDR it sometimes feels less like I'm controlling Marston and more like I'm just giving him a nudge in the right direction. That said, combat controls are quite improved--the indoor combat mechanics are now quite functional and significantly better than those of GTAIV. Also, the controls are certainly not bad, and you will master them after a few hours of play. But for me at least the nagging feeling created by the general unresponsiveness has never went away.
GTAIV has a severely flawed save system which caused you to have to often repeat entire missions, including driving to the location (taking many minutes sometimes) and listening to the same dialogue many times. RDR has a much improved save system. You can save at safehouses as always, but you can also put up camp anywhere in the wilderness and save there. Furthermore, missions contain well-placed checkpoints at which you can respawn upon failure.
Now we come to the first of Red Dead Redemption's two great faults: the storyline. Like GTAIV, RDR takes its storyline seriously. Very seriously. There are a LOT of cutscenes in this game, and unlike the dialogues in such games as Mass Effect 2 the cutscenes in RDR aren't interactive. That means that I have higher standards for the narratives they present to me.
GTAIV's plot was certainly nowhere near the perfection of The Godfather, but many of the characters were believable, and the most believable among them stayed around for the whole game, allowing for nontrivial relationships to develop. In this way the story was at least effective enough to justify the numerous cutscenes.
Red Dead Redemption has a decent premise (I'll explicitly mark when spoilers might appear). Marston is a former outlaw who, for reasons unknown, grew a conscience, left his gang, and started a family. In events prior to the game the government threatened to hurt Marston's family unless he agreed to hunt down the members of his former gang.
That's a premise that could be made into a fantastic plot. Unfortunately RDR does relatively little with it. For a very long time essentially nothing will happen in the overall plot. And it won't be until the game's conclusion or "epilogue" that you'll meet the family you're supposed to be saving--far too late for you to develop feelings about them and hence really care about saving them.
You'll meet a lot of characters. Nearly all of them will be ridiculous and extremely abnormal in some way. I actually found it nearly intolerable how every single character in the game was almost a parody, a joke. There are very few humans here--Bonnie is one of them, a girl who saves you at the game's start and helps you recover. Unfortunately, Rockstar tosses Bonnie away after the beginning of the game. This is, in fact, the general pattern in RDR: once a real relationship is established with a character, that character will be eliminated from the game--the character will just disappear from existence.
There will be a few sideplots here and there. Most of them will be as ridiculous as the characters. But the overall plot advances shockingly slowly, if at all. Tension is nonexistent. Character development is nonexistent. And even though the premise I gave you above is printed all over the game's box, it takes the game an astoundingly long time to actually present all that information to the player.
Some minor spoilers follow.
The first half of the game is spent tracking down Bill Williamson. The game will come up with all sorts of ridiculous reasons why you can't just go find him. You'll have to do really ridiculous tasks for really ridiculous characters, and it's even more ridiculous that of all the people in the world only the most ridiculous could help you find Williamson. That's the word needed to summarize this part of the game: ridiculous. When you finally confront Bill Williamson, of course he escapes, but not without throwing a veritable army at you. Once more, ridiculous. You spend half the game trying to kill him, putting up with artificial plot device after artificial plot device, and then you fight through a ridiculous army at his fort... and then he escapes. How satisfying. As I said, it's ridiculous.
Spoilers end now.
Ordinarily the plot of RDR would be perfectly suitable for a video game. But most games don't take their plots as seriously as RDR takes its plot.
The ending, though, is just unacceptable in all mediums. It's completely unnecessary and reminds me of the Fallout 3 ending. It feels like it was tacked on just to make the game feel "serious" and "emotional" and to make up for the total lack of tension throughout the entire game.
The second great flaw of RDR is its system of morality and the illusion of choice. RDR, like GTAIV, has a very thorough system built in to make wrongdoing fun and entertaining. So you've got this vast framework to facilitate all these morally questionable activities. But then the game encourages you left and right, at every juncture, constantly to do what we all know is morally right. You almost universally get more rewards for sparing the lives of enemies than for killing them. Very, very, very few of the missions in the game ever require you to do anything considered wrong in the game world, and when they do they often provide some mechanism to avoid taking a hit to your honor if you don't want it to go down.
After having played RDR, it actually comes off as rather preachy to me. You're placed in a world in which you can do good and bad and yet the game tells you to do good pretty much as often as it can. It seems that when writing the story the writers forgot that this is a video game that should be at least minimally reactive to the player. As it is, you--the player--are absolutely irrelevant to the story.
I don't consider this a great flaw like the previous two, but it's worth mentioning that a vast amount of this game feels automated. The Dead Eye component (read: magical aiming) aims and shoots for you. And unless you have it set to "expert" aiming, to shoot somebody this is all you have to do: look somewhere in their general vicinity; hit the left trigger; the game aims for you; fire with right trigger. If you want a head shot, no problem: after the game aims at their torso for you, just slightly nudge the right thumbstick upwards. It's almost guaranteed.
For a game that seems so obsessed with realism, many missions in RDR will have you think that some of the gangs you're up against could rival the U.S. military in manpower. For instance, when you first transition from the initial area (called New Austin) to Mexico, you'll float on a raft down a river separating the two regions, and I'd wager at least 30 bandits come out of nowhere on the Mexico side to kill you. Of course, using Dead Eye or the left trigger makes it easy: the game aims for you.
Finally, I'd like to comment on something I hear being said about RDR a lot. I've read in many places (and in many reviews here at Amazon) that the game gives the player an unprecedented amount of choice. This is not at all true for several reasons. First, as I said above the game is greatly biased towards what it considers morally right actions. But more importantly missions are all completely linear, straightforward, and have precisely one path for the player to take. In the end, RDR tells you how to play the game and rarely gives you a choice to meaningfully deviate from its recommendation. When you do have a choice, it generally provides greater rewards for taking its preferred path.
As an example of a game that truly does present meaningful choices about how to approach a mission, I offer Deus Ex. But even the Elder Scrolls games (Morrowind, Oblivion) give the player more options for approaching quests than RDR does.
In the end, RDR is a fun game but it flounders in its own seriousness and aspirations.
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