Red Dead Redemption Review
By - Richard J.
Back in 2002, Rockstar Games acquired the rights to publish a little-known "Spaghetti Western" game, titled "Red Dead Revolver." The game received mix reviews, but became a rare hit among fans. When Rockstar Games announced that they would be releasing a sequel to Red Dead Revolver, the hype train started. As the game neared it's release, it began to show Rockstar's true colours. The third-person action game that was Red Dead Revolver, was now going open-world and GTA-like. Red Dead Redemption hot the market to mass fanfare, and fortunately the game does not disappoint. Unfortunately, Red Dead Redemption also has it's fair share of problems.
Red Dead Redemption takes place in 1911 and tells the story of an ex-outlaw named John Marston who is sent by the US government to head West and capture his old partners-in-crime. Along the way, John meets many friends and foes on his way to one of the best conclusions of a game this year. I won't spoil it, but the ending is enough to play through the story mode of Red Dead Redemption.
The main character is of course John Marston, the ex-outlaw. John is a "good 'ole cowboy" who is frustrated by civilization advancing to the point where the Wild West will soon be gone. Red Dead Redemption is full of secondary characters. Everyone you accept a mission from is a secondary character. It would take up far too much space to explain everyone of these characters to you, so I'll give you a general summary of the characters. Like any good Rockstar game, all of the characters are very unique. You have old men, young men, crazy men, poor men, rich men, and a fair share or female characters. From the over-all design of the characters, I have nothing to complain about.
Red Dead Redemption takes the classic GTA-style open world gameplay, and spins it on it's head while also staying true to the source material. In the game world, you can travel across the beautiful plains by horse-back, or by carriage. When you get into trouble, there are a plethora of 1910-style weapons that you can use to defend yourself. If you want to take a less violent approach or if you want to catch a wild horse; you have a lasso which you can use to tie people up. The choice of weapon or lasso creates a sort of good vs. bad morality for playing. Along with personal morality, there are also respect and honour bars which you can fill or empty depending on how you play. Completing missions and helping people will raise these bars, while committing crimes and killing people will lower the bars. However, if you play through the game normally, the two bars will be fairly high by the end of the game. The gameplay is of course where Red Dead Redemption shines. Just like the first time I picked up GTA 3, Red Dead Redemption gave me a sudden rush. While that same gameplay rush eventually dies down, all of the fun you have before that makes it worth while.
While the GTA-style gameplay is great, that alone cannot hold the game up, it also needs some great graphics. Luckily, Red Dead Redemption is a very beautiful game. The landscape and environments in Red Dead Redemption are easily some of the best I have ever seen in a game. While traveling through the beautiful plains on foot, by horse, or by carriage, you will be in awe at the amount of detail that went into the environments. The only problem with the great detail is that it makes the environment literally feel like a bunch of pictures put together. If you swing your character around fast, the environment is slow to load and it appears blurry, then suddenly comes in. This pop-up is really bad and reminds me of zooming in really close to a picture, then watching it slowly become more visible.
Apart from the environments, the character models in Red Dead Redemption are also really well done. The models looks very realistic, and are full of energy. However, the character models do feel like they aren't a part of the environment. Most of the time it feels like the character models are actors in front of a green screen. There just appears to be this weird gap between the characters and the environment. It is not a game changing problem, but it is something that should be noted.
While traveling through these photo-realistic environments, you will realize that the world of Red Dead Redemption is filled with music. Most of the time you will barely notice the same music and bits of audio playing over-and-over again, but there are a few times when it moves away from this constant path. Just before you enter the last act of the game, you must ride to your destination. During this time, the music becomes very epic and adds so much emotion to this certain part of the story. That part alone made me realize how well done the music is in Red Dead Redemption.
Not to be overshadowed by the music, there is also some "interesting" voice acting in the game. For the most part it is quite well done. There are authentic accents for all of the characters, and their voices match exactly what you would think they would be from looking at the characters. However, I consider them "interesting" because some of them are just crazy. Look at the character Seth who you meet near the beginning of the game, he is the perfect example of a voice over that is a bit crazy. Overall though, the voice acting in the game is solid.
As for replay value, Red Dead Redemption is overflowing with it. To start, there is a 15 - 20 hour single-player story mode. Then, there is an endless online multiplayer mode that is more than worth your time. If the first online multiplayer options for Red Dead Redemption -- like Shootout, Hold Your Own, and Gold Rush -- aren't your cup of tea, there are a batch of multiplayer co-op missions that were introduced with the free DLC pack - Outlaws to the End. With all of these lengthy, while also high quality modes that appeal to nearly every gamer, Red Dead Redemption has incredible replay value.
All-in-all, Red Dead Redemption is classic Grand Theft Auto gameplay with a fresh coat of paint. If you have enjoyed any of the previous 3D GTA games, Red Dead Redemption will be an instant purchase for you. However, if you have never been one for this tried-and-true Rockstar formula, you may want to wait. Red Dead Redemption does stay true to the forumla, while also being a little easier for gamers who are out of the Rockstar loop to jump in. The toned down "smut" and profanity of Red Dead Redemption makes it much more appealing to those who are a little more sensitive. With amazing gameplay, graphics, sound, and replay value, everyone should at least try Red Dead Redemption -- even if it stays in your backlog for a while.
PROS
- Classic Rockstar gameplay
- Decent story line
- Extremely realistic environments
- Interesting soundtrack
- Incredible replay value
- Opening for new players
CONS
- Same exact Rockstar gameplay formula
- Graphics too realistic for current consoles -- intense pop-up
- Some crazy voice acting
RATING: 9/10
