Thread: Red Dead Redemption - 360/PS3

Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption (RDR) is an open-world action game developed by Rockstar San Diego and published by Rockstar for the Xbox 360 and PS3.



Westerns have been around for a long time in gaming, all the way back to Gunsmoke for the NES. To me, the only one to hold enough weight and depth was Ubisoft's 2006 effort GUN, which had too many issues to be a gem.

All western-themed games step aside. RDR is the king, and will not be dethroned for some time.

Grand Theft Auto Meets the Old West, and it is a wild ride.

RDR is the spiritual successor to 2004's Red Dead Revolver. It has nothing in common with the previous game, and it's not like Revolver was some sort of masterpiece that was met with critical acclaim that deserved a sequel. I think they shouldve ditched the Red Dead moniker entirely, and just called the game 'Redemption'. Whatever.

In RDR, it's 1911. The Wild West days are almost gone. Where there was once vast plains and ranchland, there are now cities being built and modern civilization is rapidly expanding. You play the role of John Marston, a former gang outlaw and murderer. Under pressure from Government officials who have threatened your family, you are sent to bring your former partners to justice.

First things first, the game generally looks spectacular at all times. The amount of detail is amazing considering the huge scope of the land. From the lip synching all the way down to Marston's facial scars, to the way your horse gallops, the sky and the sunset, the cacti, and most characters look fantastic on either system. If you play this game on a SD set and not in HD, youre missing something special. This is one of the best looking games Ive seen to date on the HD hardware. There are no graphical hiccups, pop-in, slowdown, or long load times except the first time you start the game. The engine is rock solid.



The world of RDR is simply massive, and it may seem even more massive because your main mode of transport is your horse. Galavanting around Liberty City in GTA was easy in one of your chosen stolen road rockets, but aside from the horse and the occasional stage coach or train ride, getting around becomes a chore and takes a bit of time. It may seem more frustrating to me because I dont like the riding controls. Theyre a little clumsy, but they work.

Controlling Marston though, is pretty much a breeze. Except for one portion I had a hard time getting him up three steps and into a doorway (that cost me a mission) he's smooth. The shooting mechanics are very solid. Left trigger draws your selected gun, automatically locking on to the nearest target and the right one fires. There's a cover feature so you can crouch behind rocks and walls for the extended gunfights, and youll be involved in a LOT of gunfights.

There's a fame/infamy type of system that changes the game based on your actions, whether theyre heroic or vicious. People will react to you differently accordingly, but the benefits seem to better you when you act heroic with store discounts and such.

If you thought GTA had a lot to do, RDR seems to have just as much or more. Poker, Blackjack, playing horsehoes, drinking, optional Dead or Alive 'Wanted' missions, sharpshooting, hunting, duels, herding cattle, reigning in wild mustangs, item retrieving and collecting, treasure hunting... I didnt even cover them all. This isnt even counting the side missions or random rescue missions that pop up constantly. There are plenty of ways to make cash and find it, so if your a little low on the ducets, have no fear. You can loot every person you kill, and sell your findings at any general store.

The sound is rich with Western music, the guns sound authentic but I thought they'd be louder. The horses and cattle sound so realistic as do all the animals. The voice work is spot on in cutscenes.

I cant say it enough. RDR is a likely candidate for multi-platform title of the year. Top-notch graphics, an extremely lengthy campaign with a ton of stuff to do, a pretty good backround story and solid mechanics, RDR is a cant miss, must play experience. If youre any fan of westerns and a gamer, this is a must-buy. It'll keep you busy and addicted for weeks.

9.5/10

Rated M for Mature- Blood, intense violence, strong language, use of alcohol and tobacco, nudity, strong sexual content

Bout time they do a good western game. GUN was ok, but Call of Jaurez wasn't bad either. I'll have to pick this up.

A couple of my buddies said this game was nice. I played Red Dead Revolver and liked it. When this title gets here, I'll buy it for sure.

Nice review Shazam. Thanks.

A friend told me he was sneaking around in the desert, hunting. He got off his horse to get a better look at something when a mountain lion snuck up behind him and ate his horse.

I saw a "preview" of this a week ago or so. It looks like a great game. I'll have to get it.

The one shot to me against Call of Juarez was the constant switching between characters. It was much more fun playing the purifying priest than the bitch boy.

GUN was pretty good but had some issues. RDR is very similar, but much larger, expansive, deep and waaaay better much looking. After all GUN was ported from the PS2 and XBox.

RDR is a masterpiece. Im hooked.

Sweet. I've been checking out tons of videos for this game and I am definitely sold. I got sick of GTA IV real quick, but I love Westerns and I need a good single player game soon. So sick of the Xbox live ********.

my kid picked this up last night, I haven't looked at it yet. I'll give it a try.

I've played for about 6 hours (at my buddies house), he picked it up on Thursday. This game is effing amazing, and I haven't even seen the multiplayer yet looks/sounds to be damn near another game by itself. Will be a couple weeks before I pick it up and I'm already wanting to kill for it

Im about 14 hours in.

For one thing the story mode is a bit easy. I havent died since early on and I can really bring the pain now and kill mofos with ease. I have so much money that I cant spend any more.

Also, it's getting repetitive to me. All the main missions are getting pretty much the same. I know Im nearing the end, but its starting to get stale.

Is it still epic? Abo-friggin-lutely. I still stand by my words before.

Ill get Alan Wake next and post my thoughts.

Originally Posted by weazel

my kid picked this up last night, I haven't looked at it yet. I'll give it a try.

Mine's been playing it non-stop now for days.

I just finished it. WOW. The ending is epic, I dont want to go into it and spoil it.

Moving on to Alan Wake.

Well written Shazam. I bought this the day it came out and haven't put it down since. The free roam is great, gameplay is really fun, and you make a great point on how the gun play is expansive. It can get repetitive at times, but it is a free roam/sand box style game, so it is somewhat expected; fun nonetheless. And getting from place to place on horse can be quite a pain, especially if you need to go to the other end of the map to complete a task.

The other thing I have a complaint about is the weapon wheel. It may be just me, but I find it kind of annoying. I think it takes too much time to search for weapons, especially if you're in a middle of a gun fight. That's just me though, and it doesn't take away from how great the game is (so far). Other minor bumps I've come across are just some graphic glitches. It doesn't happen often, but I have come across it a couple of times. And one final thing, when I'm in the middle of say, stopping a guy from knifing a woman, I go to whip out my gun to shoot the guy in the middle of town, but the law enforcement nearby instantly draw their guns and fire at me! Has this happened to anyone else? (Note: I have this on PS3)

I'm just about more than half way done with the Mexico part....so I can't wait to explore what other areas the game has to offer. IMO, the attention to detail in the scenery is really great.

Really fun game so far. I don't know if its because I like the western setting or the protagonist, but unlike Grand Theft Auto I haven't gotten bored with it after 10 hours (I still own GTAIV and have not finished it). Really enjoying taking my time on it. I love the random events, I finally shot the rope of the noose of a hanging victim today.

Another cool event is when I was hunting I got attacked by mountain lions. I hauled ass to a nearby camp fire and the lions circled the fire because they were afraid of it. Pretty neat little detail, unless it was some kind of game glitch. Either way I blew their asses away after that.

Originally Posted by MasterShake

Really fun game so far. I don't know if its because I like the western setting or the protagonist, but unlike Grand Theft Auto I haven't gotten bored with it after 10 hours (I still own GTAIV and have not finished it). Really enjoying taking my time on it. I love the random events, I finally shot the rope of the noose of a hanging victim today.

Another cool event is when I was hunting I got attacked by mountain lions. I hauled ass to a nearby camp fire and the lions circled the fire because they were afraid of it. Pretty neat little detail, unless it was some kind of game glitch. Either way I blew their asses away after that.

Watch out for grizzly bears

The other thing I have a complaint about is the weapon wheel. It may be just me, but I find it kind of annoying. I think it takes too much time to search for weapons, especially if you're in a middle of a gun fight. That's just me though, and it doesn't take away from how great the game is (so far).

I hear ya it was a bit of a pain, but for the most part I was using rifles. I rarely switched only on certain situations, like whe nI entered close encounter areas I switched to either a pistol or shottie.

Other minor bumps I've come across are just some graphic glitches. It doesn't happen often, but I have come across it a couple of times.

I came across only two glitches that 'repaired' itself only towards the very end of the game. My 360 was running on overdrive and practically cooking at the time, so I attributed it to that. I have seen no issues in over 22 hours of play leading up to my glitches.

And one final thing, when I'm in the middle of say, stopping a guy from knifing a woman, I go to whip out my gun to shoot the guy in the middle of town, but the law enforcement nearby instantly draw their guns and fire at me! Has this happened to anyone else? (Note: I have this on PS3)

Are you a hero? If youre an outlaw the lawmen will get after you right quick. If youre a hero, many of your minor actions are ignored.