Red Dead Redemption is in many ways a therapeutic release.
The Game Is Solid
That review might be blunt but it does contain everything you need to know. The ability for us to take advantage of technical consistency is rare, and should be leapt upon. What makes Rockstar such a great developer is their understanding of character design and their implementation of moral cause and effect. The proficiency of Red Dead Redemption as a virtual adventure transcends typical review doctrine and allows us to focus on the meat of the experience. If this was a book we would be discussing character dynamics, not spelling mistakes.
Seth is one of my favourite characters in Red Dead Redemption.
In the lawless Wild West he fit's perfectly - an environment in which people essentially had to govern themselves, choosing their own morality, because the law simply wasn't resourceful enough. Rockstar is granted the freedom to explore a much darker realm of this lawlessness through it's characters and Seth is an excellent example of that; He's a grave robbing lunatic. Hypnotic to watch in action, Seth instils a fascinated horror as he lurches from grave to grave. His presence is an excellent example of what makes Rockstar games so dynamic. His tone and general aesthetic have been pitched perfectly. The character feels alive, his existence outside our perspective remains constant. The world that Rockstar have created contains a constant entity called Seth. He also makes a favourable contrast to the disgusting decency of the McFarlanes who are fair, honest people. Their capable spectrum as characters has transparent limits and have long ceased to engage. I resent being forced to act so gentlemanly in their presence when I am clearly a fucking sociopath. The character of John Marston is not complex, and should not be treated as such.
Obvious similarities may be drawn to Niko Bellic in that his passive diplomacy makes him an ideal candidate to explore the extremes of his surrounding cast. However there are times when Marston feels almost completely hollow and lifeless, spouting threats almost automatically and with no real conviction - and most frustratingly, at times when threats are just unnecessary. Whilst I appreciate Marston operates purely to achieve his goals it can be very aggrivating watching him repeatedly insult and threaten the characters who are much more interesting than he himself. Niko humoured and sympathised with his comrades and, at the very least, offered some enthusiasm when screaming "I'm going to rip your fucking head off!". Marston just looks and sounds bored, which can detract from the entire experience.
Whilst Marston has seemingly been cast as reliable whereas Niko was generally more spontaneous. It might be a result of the hidden presence of Marstons driving force: When Niko is rushing to save Roman we have an empathy for the character we are trying to preserve. Marston kills to save his wife and child, absent, and as such we have no way of associating to his sense of loss if they were to die. They aren't characters I care about and consequently I have no enthusiasm to keep them alive. I just want to explore.
Red Dead Redemption does have a sobriety which makes it a lot darker that Grand Theft Auto 4, probably due to the lack of sarcastic advertising constantly ringing in your ears. The expanse is vast, silent and full of things trying to kill you. One feels small within it. There is humour, still, but it is dry and subtle. The game is usually slow and reflective, which is a nice change of pace.
I don't know how much of Red Dead Redemption I am yet to experience but I only just landed in Mexico so i'm assuming there is a sizeable chunk left to play. Unfortunately I have exams in a week and I am dramatically under-prepared so, for now, I am taking a videogame hiatus. I shall still be using giantbomb but don't expect to see me on Xbox Live or Steam.
Thanks For Reading
Love Sweep
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