A story written in landscape format
It is rare these days that I buy a game on the first day of its release, since I simply don't have the time to play everything that I'm interested in (which is almost everything). When the "Life in the West" series of trailers released for Red Dead Redemption, I saw the possibility of something special and snapped up a copy on the day of its release. I've finally had time to work my way to RDR's ending and I'm ready to deliver a verdict.
Red Dead Redemption is built on the sand-box framework that has served the Grand Theft Auto series well. Like the most recent Grand Theft Auto (GTA IV), the game has a more serious tone. The world therefore serves more as a stage for the story it tells, than a sandbox for gaming experimentation.
And what a grand stage it is, the landscapes of Red Dead Redemption are the most beautiful spaces I've encountered in a game. The regions of New Austin, Nuevo Paradiso, and New Elizabeth are varied and faithful representations of the spaces in which westerns typically occur. The presentation is rounded of by solid voice acting and an exemplary soundtrack, giving Red Dead's story and game play every chance to succeed.
Do they succeed? To that question, a qualified yes. Like the locations, the story is split into three parts and like most stories told in three parts, the middle drags a little. The ending is paced exquisitely however, and by the time the credits roll the minor missteps along the way are long forgotten.
Red Dead Redemption is a video game however, and should ultimately be judged by the quality of the interaction on offer. The majority of Red Dead Redemption's game play consists of gun-play and horse riding. Gunfights are the standard third-person shooter fare, which is occasionally dragged down by iffy cover mechanics, but mostly succeeds due to the "dead-eye" mechanic. The ability to mark targets in slow-motion and subsequently execute them is satisfying and adds a strategic layer to combat.
Horse riding serves as the main means of movement about the world and is handled with a good balance of realism and function, but still does not reach the epitome of man-horse interaction presented in Shadow of the Colossus (meant as non-pervertedly as your mind can manage) .
In addition to the main mechanics there are a multitude of well developed and integrated mini-games. They are relegated to distractions, however, by the focus of the main story missions on the aforementioned mechanics. Your enjoyment of Red Dead Redemption is therefore mostly determined by your enjoyment of shooting and horse riding, which I found to be repetitive at times.
In conclusion, however, I must qualify my previous statement by saying that the repetition only kicks in if you choose to barrel straight toward the game's ending. Like the West, Red Dead is better enjoyed by taking things slowly and enjoying the freedom the expanses offer. The developers may have focused on telling a story, but ultimately succeeded in the realization of the old west as setting for video games. A setting I'm hoping to see a lot more of in the gaming decades to come.
