I was unfamiliar with the Red Dead franchise prior to this game but kept seeing high praise from console gamers. When RDR2 finally made the transition to PC, I was excited but also cautious--many PC reviews cited optimization issues and issues with connection via the Rockstar Games Launcher. So, rather than jumping immediately on the RDR2 train, I decided to wait it out and see if some of those issues were patched and if reviews improved (and also, for a sale price, because I'm cheap). The reviews did eventually improve (although some of them are very centered around the online portion of the game) and with a snazzy $10 off coupon from Epic, I decided it was time to mount up on my figurative RDR2 horse.
The story in RDR2 follows the Dutch van der Linde gang--a diverse set of individuals who use their unique talents for acts that aren't exactly legal--and is set in a late 19th century version of a pseudo-United States. The story opens on the gang as they are in full flight from a robbery gone wrong and are looking for a new place to set up camp. You play as the rugged cowboy/outlaw Arthur Morgan--a loyal member of the gang who is perfectly content carrying out the orders of its leader, Dutch van der Linde. The story follows the gang as they try to figure out a way to flee from their past and work toward a potential new beginning that doesn't involve constantly running from the law. Unfortunately, things quickly start to go wrong and the gang finds itself questioning everything they've worked for (no spoilers!).
A frame of reference for this review: I have only played the story potion of the game. I don't know my exact played time (because I bought it on Epic Games and they don't have a play time tracker like Steam) but I would estimate it close to 100 hours. Even though I like to complete things, the epic scope of this game is insane so I quickly gave up on trying to complete everything. I mostly stuck to the main story missions and side missions.
Pros:
+ Gorgeous, amazing world. Rockstar always creates magical, massive playgrounds and RDR2 is no exception. The open world is a reflection of various regions in the United States--the story begins in the snowy, mountains and quickly moves down into a somewhat wild, western frontier area. As you explore and advance through the story the world varies--there's the southern inspired, plantation region around the city of Rhodes; the swampy, Bayou Nwa; the Appalachia-esque Roanoke Valley; the sprawling, dirty city of Saint Denis and later in the game the open, Great Plains area as well as the southern deserts. There's a ton of variety and it's all beautiful.
The open world bustles with life--various species of animals populate their own specific zones and simply identifying all of them is a challenge. The world is dotted with various cities, farms, cabins, and oddities. The simple act of trying to uncover the entire map could be quite time consuming, but is a lot of fun.
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| A beautiful view of the open world in RDR2. |
+ Great story filled with plenty of ups, downs, and memorable shootouts. The van der Linde gang is working toward an ultimate end game--making enough money to leave their pasts behind them and escape to a lush retirement on a tropical island. In order for that to happen the gang needs to figure out how to set aside enough cash for everyone to get out--this will require more high risk robbery, rubbing elbows with the elite who can help facilitate high paying opportunities (and who often end up victims themselves), and lots of crazy plans. The road to the ultimate out turns out to be fraught with problems.
+ Challenges, side tasks, and enough activities to keep you busy for a long, long time. Challenges are molded around various activities in the game world--bandit challenges require players to perfect their skills at robbery; the horseman challenges test your ability to master riding skills--there are many other challenges and each set rewards players with uniquely styled gear. One of the side tasks I spent a lot of time on was hunting legendary animals and then fishing for legendary fish. Both activities take you to the far flung regions of the map (there's an aspect of exploration) and killing legendary animals rewards you with unique pelts that can be combined with other hunted pelts to create themed gear sets.
If completing challenges isn't your thing you can spend time trying to find the various stranger activities scattered around the game world or on side missions. If you really want to dedicate yourself to a life of crime there's the option of robbing trains, stagecoaches, or grand theft auto circa 1890's--stealing horses and wagons to sell. It's your world!
+ A gang of great characters who you get to know and love (or hate). The van der Linde gang is a band of misfits--Strauss, the bespectacled Austrian loan shark; Javier, the Mexican gunslinger; Charles, the half-African American, half Native American pal of Arthur; Uncle, the layabout whiner who spends most of his days drunkenly avoiding any work; Miss Grimshaw, the matron and camp boss who keeps everyone in line; Pearson, the former Navy sailor and camp quartermaster; the Marston/Roberts family....and all the others.
+ Riding your horse is weirdly relaxing and enjoyable. Finding the best horses in the game is another fun way to spend time. I vote that RDR2 has the best horses--they are beautiful, your character has a relationship and bonds with their horse, and their movement is really well done and feels fluid and natural.
+ Tons of customizable weapons to choose from. Pistols are your stock sidearm, but throughout the game you find/unlock/can purchase repeating rifles, bolt action rifles, shotguns, a bow, and a wide range of melee weapons (knives, tomahawks, and a machete). Almost all the weapons can be customized to make them really feel like your own--you can improve a weapon with better rifling, various scopes, metalwork and engraving, custom varnishes and leathers....you can really turn them into personalized works of art (it does cost, but once you're flush with cash you can start adding in these features).
+ Signature oddities hidden in the game world. Rockstar likes to sprinkle a bit of weirdness into its games and RDR2 is no exception. I found a cabin that belonged to a cult who had apparently committed suicide while waiting for alien abduction; another cabin fell victim to a hunk of meteor that fell through the roof and killed all the occupants--those are just two examples that come immediately to mind, but checking out the various structures in the game is definitely a fun way to spend time and find all the weird little stories.
+ Combat means shooting a lot of people...and it's really fun--the best part is the Dead Eye ability which greatly slows time and allows you to line up the perfect shots. As you earn experience by using the Dead Eye ability it improves to include highlighted kill zones on your foes--an even better way to one-shot slay your way through encounters.
I felt a bit mixed about the cover system in the game--you can take cover behind various objects, but you will still get shot through those objects. Rocks are irregularly shaped and using them for cover is sketchy at best.
+Photo mode. A beautiful game world naturally lends itself to amazing screenshots which are facilitated by the built-in opportunity to snap a pic. There are plenty of options for capturing the perfect screenie.
+ A jillion graphics settings to help (confuse) you figure out your perfect setup.
+ Some of the best weather effects that I have seen in a game. Blankets of dense fog that make seeing anything difficult, brilliant flashes of lightning, blowing blizzards--each weather effect helps add to the uniqueness of specific regions.
Cons:
- Launchers within launchers. In order to play RDR2 (regardless of your digital service of choice--Epic or Steam) you have to use the Rockstar Games Launcher. This means downloading said launcher, trying to remember log-in information from the time you setup a Social Club account (which, by the way, the e-mail account that you used for your initial Social Club account CANNOT BE CHANGED ONCE YOU CONFIRM IT! Be extra cautious about this!). I had numerous issues with initial setup--the Rockstar Launcher couldn't find the game files...then I found a fix for that; then (and this was a fluke thing) the Epic Games service couldn't authenticate the files (due to server issues related to a massive number of people trying to activate their free copies of GTA V). It took me well over an hour just to get the game started! I was on the brink of hitting refund (I'm really glad I didn't).
The reality is that you need to have an always online connection--I don't even know if playing offline is an option (and that's for the singleplayer story mode). After my initial issues with setup I think I only had one log-in related issue (many reviews will mention the sketchy nature of the Rockstar Games Services--those issues seem to have been largely fixed).
- Morality system and a handful of choice-based opportunities. I feel mixed about this aspect of the game. Players have the ability to mold their version of Arthur into a ruthless criminal or a generally honorable thief--this is mostly facilitated through activities that take place in the open world. You might encounter someone who needs help and offer to aid them (earning honor points) or you might turn a blind eye and then rob their corpse (earning bandit points)--but, the main storyline is largely linear--Arthur will still be participating in the illegal activities of the gang regardless of what kind of person you've shaped him into. It just felt disjointed to me. There are a handful of opportunities within the main storyline to choose Arthur's path of action and I'm not really sure what impact it has on the story. It lends itself to replayability to choose a different path and witness the impact of those choices.
- Crashes and graphics settings. I mentioned this as a pro, because the graphics settings are exceptionally detailed and were specifically made that way for the PC version--but finding the perfect settings can be chocked with trial and error. The initial setup for me defaulted to very high settings which, once I figured out how to change them, I quickly turned down (the game looked absolutely great on ultra but my PC was a bit toasty). I had numerous crashes (and generally at weird times....like during table games) until I finally settled on what must've been the goldilocks level of settings--"prioritize performance." If you're experiencing crashing, I would recommend lowering the settings--the game still looks great. It's worth being aware that that the game will want to leave texture settings on ultra even as you turn down the level of detail. The downside of the highly detailed graphic settings is that you will need to play with them to figure out what works for you and will result in no crashes.
- Save system is a bit weird. The game largely autosaves which works well. You can manually save, but it sort of messes up the autosaves. I manual saved before a store robbery that I wasn't quite sure I wanted to commit to. In the course of the robbery there was a weird situation and I accidentally shot someone (I would explain more, but it's kind of spoilery). I went to reload the save I made just prior to the robbery but found that the autosave had basically overwritten my manual save and I couldn't go back. I don't think there are any quick saves either. You're basically stuck with autosaves--I still don't fully understand how it works.
- Some side tasks are quite tedious. 100% completion in RDR2 is a true testament to patience. It still boggles me why games continue to include laborious collection side tasks. One set which immediately comes to my mind is given to you by a gentleman who makes fancy hats in Saint Denis and tasks you with gathering rare flowers and Egret plumes. The flowers only spawn in one very specific set of locations and in a limited amount (same with the Egrets) and collecting the number that this individual wants is not enjoyable. I completed the first round and then said eff it to the rest. I also found the table games to be pretty boring and they felt like a chore to complete (which you have to do for the gambler challenges). I'm also strongly opposed to looking up guides and would rather accomplish things organically--that takes way more time and patience.
- Screenshots taken through the in-game photo mode are not easily accessible--they are physically saved in a strange format that requires special file conversion or they can be uploaded to your Social Club account and downloaded from your page. It's an extra step that feels unnecessary.
Recommendation:
I had a great time playing RDR2 and would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys open world games with a strong story core. The cons that I mention were mildly irritating, but the quality of the game and world are definitely worth it. It is a game that is worth paying full price for. I wished that I had bought it on Steam due to the fact that its built-in features are definitely better than Epic's (the web browser and screenshots namely).
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