I was almost happy that Sunday was the final day of PAX.   I was dead-tired at that point, not from expressly exerting myself, but just from the sheer patience it required to wait in oh-so-many lines as part of this ongoing ordeal.   Don’t get me wrong, I am a hearty fan of video games, but there comes a point where it’s just too much.   Video game overload, if you will.   When I woke up Sunday morning, my mind was starting to melt from the amount of screens my eyeballs had been plastered to over the last couple of days.   However, being a three-day pass owner, I had to make Sunday a go.   And boy, I’m glad I did. 

The first and foremost goal on Sunday was to get in line for Red Dead Redemption and actually get to play the damn game after all the talk and hype surrounding it.   So, after standing in line with the masses in the Queue Room, my friend (same friend as before) and I made haste to the show floor in order to get ourselves in yet another line.   It was a very long line, especially considering that we were waiting for a mere 10-15 minute demo which we could (probably) play on our own consoles, in the comfort of our own homes, within the month.   But we wanted to play it now!   And so, we waited. 

As we waited in line for what seemed like forever, we saw the booth adjacent to Rockstar’s were passing out free copies of The Lord of the Rings Online.   Each person at that booth got a boxed copy for free which was then plastered with signatures from some smug, and wide, people sitting behind a metallic desk.   I’m assuming that these people had something to do with the game, but I honestly had no idea what their respective roles were.   I also assume that the game wasn’t really free, but was merely a trial that one would have to begin paying for after a week or so.   Again, I don’t know for sure.   It was merely an observation.

As we rounded the corner to the front of the Red Dead Redemption booth, we saw the best Ghostbusters cosplay that I have ever seen.   There were four guys, all in matching gray/tan suits with the requisite nametags, as well as gloriously crafted proton packs.   These proton packs were something else, featuring lights that showed energy levels, power, and other assorted necessary information for the working Ghostbuster.   The suits looked like they were ripped straight from the movies.   Props to whoever made them.   Also, soon after they walked by we saw Ash and Misty.   Nice work kids, but you ain’t the best by a longshot. 

At long last, we found ourselves peering into the gaping maw of the Red Dead Redemption booth.   The kindly gentleman in front split us into groups and we went in.   I was paired with a guy who liked his aiming controls inverted (craziness I tell you), so I had to switch the controls around every time I got the controller.   Anyway, Red Dead Redemption is looking to be a fine cowboy game.   I do believe it is running on the same engine as GTA IV (the Rage engine), and the character models move similarly to the characters in GTA.   The protagonist (whose name I failed to catch) doesn’t have quite the same distinctive gait that Niko Bellic is so famous for, but he certainly did have a nice rogue-ish strut going down, a kind of walk that says “Yes, I am badass.   What of it?”

RDR was first introduced to me (by the helpful gent in the booth) as an animal wrangling game, and wrangle animals I did.   I wrangled me some coyotes before he also told me it was a shooting game.   The real key to the shooting is the dead-eye system, in which you can temporarily slow down time.   With time slowed, simply move the reticule over the men/horses/misc. animals that you would like to cap, and then release the trigger to let all hell break loose.   And my goodness is it satisfying we you kill four other dudes before they even pull out a gun.   Best of all, the characters respond directly to where you shot them.   If someone is shot in the leg, he will start to limp; shot in the arm, he might drop his gun; shot in the head, that man is a goner.   You can even trace multiple points over a single person/animal.   Want to shoot someone in both legs at once?   Go for it.   He will drop to the ground crying until either you end him or he starts crawling away using his arms.   Sadism has never been so sweet.

The game also features some quality, albeit tried-and-true, cover-based shooting.   Similarly to GTA IV, you can take cover behind pretty much any object that looks like cover (although some plants are iffy).   Shootouts are great fun, with other cowboy-hat-wearing folk popping out behind swinging doors, bar counters, rooftops, and windows.   It truly feels like the Wild West.   The guns feel great, rumbling the controller and creating loud, convincing bangs with each pull of the trigger.   The shotgun is always a good time because you can walk into a room, hide behind a table and then proceed to kill upwards of four guys with one shell.   Their knockback from the force of the shotgun is also amazing, with some great ragdoll physics kicking in to make the enemies splay themselves horribly across the ground after being blasted to bits.   The other guns work well too, with the pistol and hunting rifle doing their respective duties with such glee.   I’ve never had so much fun just experimenting with shooting enemies in different areas of their bodies, if only to see how they fall down.   It may be sick, but I had such a good time. 

All in all, Red Dead Redemption seems like another great game from Rockstar.   The graphics aren’t all that spectacular, but the open-world elements are convincing enough, and the horse controls are pretty good.   The real draw here is either lining up your shots and killing them before they kill you, or just hellblazing through a bar and killing everyone in sight.   Either is a just as viable an option, and each is a great deal of fun.   I do believe that this is true revolution of the Western game, and I’m really looking forward to it.

COMING SOON ~ PART 5, FEATURING THE SEQULITIS PANEL (I MEAN IT THIS TIME), MORE SHOW FLOOR, AND THE OMEGATHON

I was almost happy that Sunday was the final day of PAX.   I was dead-tired at that point, not from expressly exerting myself, but just from the sheer patience it required to wait in oh-so-many lines as part of this ongoing ordeal.   Don’t get me wrong, I am a hearty fan of video games, but there comes a point where it’s just too much.   Video game overload, if you will.   When I woke up Sunday morning, my mind was starting to melt from the amount of screens my eyeballs had been plastered to over the last couple of days.   However, being a three-day pass owner, I had to make Sunday a go.   And boy, I’m glad I did. 

The first and foremost goal on Sunday was to get in line for Red Dead Redemption and actually get to play the damn game after all the talk and hype surrounding it.   So, after standing in line with the masses in the Queue Room, my friend (same friend as before) and I made haste to the show floor in order to get ourselves in yet another line.   It was a very long line, especially considering that we were waiting for a mere 10-15 minute demo which we could (probably) play on our own consoles, in the comfort of our own homes, within the month.   But we wanted to play it now!   And so, we waited. 

As we waited in line for what seemed like forever, we saw the booth adjacent to Rockstar’s were passing out free copies of The Lord of the Rings Online.   Each person at that booth got a boxed copy for free which was then plastered with signatures from some smug, and wide, people sitting behind a metallic desk.   I’m assuming that these people had something to do with the game, but I honestly had no idea what their respective roles were.   I also assume that the game wasn’t really free, but was merely a trial that one would have to begin paying for after a week or so.   Again, I don’t know for sure.   It was merely an observation.

As we rounded the corner to the front of the Red Dead Redemption booth, we saw the best Ghostbusters cosplay that I have ever seen.   There were four guys, all in matching gray/tan suits with the requisite nametags, as well as gloriously crafted proton packs.   These proton packs were something else, featuring lights that showed energy levels, power, and other assorted necessary information for the working Ghostbuster.   The suits looked like they were ripped straight from the movies.   Props to whoever made them.   Also, soon after they walked by we saw Ash and Misty.   Nice work kids, but you ain’t the best by a longshot. 

At long last, we found ourselves peering into the gaping maw of the Red Dead Redemption booth.   The kindly gentleman in front split us into groups and we went in.   I was paired with a guy who liked his aiming controls inverted (craziness I tell you), so I had to switch the controls around every time I got the controller.   Anyway, Red Dead Redemption is looking to be a fine cowboy game.   I do believe it is running on the same engine as GTA IV (the Rage engine), and the character models move similarly to the characters in GTA.   The protagonist (whose name I failed to catch) doesn’t have quite the same distinctive gait that Niko Bellic is so famous for, but he certainly did have a nice rogue-ish strut going down, a kind of walk that says “Yes, I am badass.   What of it?”

RDR was first introduced to me (by the helpful gent in the booth) as an animal wrangling game, and wrangle animals I did.   I wrangled me some coyotes before he also told me it was a shooting game.   The real key to the shooting is the dead-eye system, in which you can temporarily slow down time.   With time slowed, simply move the reticule over the men/horses/misc. animals that you would like to cap, and then release the trigger to let all hell break loose.   And my goodness is it satisfying we you kill four other dudes before they even pull out a gun.   Best of all, the characters respond directly to where you shot them.   If someone is shot in the leg, he will start to limp; shot in the arm, he might drop his gun; shot in the head, that man is a goner.   You can even trace multiple points over a single person/animal.   Want to shoot someone in both legs at once?   Go for it.   He will drop to the ground crying until either you end him or he starts crawling away using his arms.   Sadism has never been so sweet.

The game also features some quality, albeit tried-and-true, cover-based shooting.   Similarly to GTA IV, you can take cover behind pretty much any object that looks like cover (although some plants are iffy).   Shootouts are great fun, with other cowboy-hat-wearing folk popping out behind swinging doors, bar counters, rooftops, and windows.   It truly feels like the Wild West.   The guns feel great, rumbling the controller and creating loud, convincing bangs with each pull of the trigger.   The shotgun is always a good time because you can walk into a room, hide behind a table and then proceed to kill upwards of four guys with one shell.   Their knockback from the force of the shotgun is also amazing, with some great ragdoll physics kicking in to make the enemies splay themselves horribly across the ground after being blasted to bits.   The other guns work well too, with the pistol and hunting rifle doing their respective duties with such glee.   I’ve never had so much fun just experimenting with shooting enemies in different areas of their bodies, if only to see how they fall down.   It may be sick, but I had such a good time. 

All in all, Red Dead Redemption seems like another great game from Rockstar.   The graphics aren’t all that spectacular, but the open-world elements are convincing enough, and the horse controls are pretty good.   The real draw here is either lining up your shots and killing them before they kill you, or just hellblazing through a bar and killing everyone in sight.   Either is a just as viable an option, and each is a great deal of fun.   I do believe that this is true revolution of the Western game, and I’m really looking forward to it.

COMING SOON ~ PART 5, FEATURING THE SEQULITIS PANEL (I MEAN IT THIS TIME), MORE SHOW FLOOR, AND THE OMEGATHON