Horsey Time

Recently I saw a social media interview where they asked gamers about a game that simply lives on their PC/console--the type of game that you never uninstall because you just might want to pick it up.  For me, one of those games (because I definitely have more than one) would be Red Dead Redemption 2.  I finally caved and built the new PC that I had been fantasizing about and it was the first "big" game that I installed.  I've been happily engrossed in the various activities that Arthur Morgan can engage in (and mostly neglecting the main storyline).  As I play through RDR2 and enjoy so much about it, there are still a few things that irritate me.

Irritation #1

Why must we still have the launchers within launchers in the year of our lord 2025!  I downloaded all ~130 GB of game only to go to launch it and be prompted to install the Rockstar Launcher.  And yes, the Rockstar Launcher installation isn't a big deal...except I got a weird error where some of the "prerequisite" items weren't able to properly install.  I shrugged it off, but have felt like I've had a bit of an unstable experience with some crashing and some weirdness related to graphics settings (I've moved up into the world of 1440p).  I attempted to fix the issue by verifying my game files on Epic (but it's not a game files related issue) and also uninstalling and re-installing the launcher.  I've still had some issues which might actually be related to an AMD graphics specific setting.  Look, all I want is to be able to sign into one thing and not have remember another password or mess with another program.

Wendy the horse.  A beautiful Nokota.

Irritation #2

I'm grateful that we did actually get RDR2 on PC because it is definitely one of my favorites.  Yes, the PC version of Rockstar games is generally an afterthought (who knows when we will see the PC version of GTA VI) but they did actually throw us a bone in the form of photo mode.  I love a good photo mode in a beautiful game like RDR2 and enjoy stopping to snap a nice screenshot of something scenic.  However the way that screenshots are stored and retrieved is stupid.  Screenshots are actually saved locally on your PC...just in a weird format that requires using a special program or doing some strange editing using notepad.  The other method is to upload your screenshots to Rockstar Social Club (which has apparently gone the way of the dodo) and then log in to the website and retrieve them from your personal profile by downloading them.  This is entirely too onerous and turns what should be a fun additional feature into more of a chore.

Horseshoe Overlook is one of my favorite scenic spots.

Irritation #3

I'm a completely unashamed save scummer in games that allow the constant mashing of the quicksave button.  Rockstar games are not those games--the autosave system is a bit of a mystery.  There's no message at the beginning of the game to look for a tiny spinning symbol to indicate that the game is being saved.  I like to assault a gang camp whenever I stumble across one--occasionally those assaults can go a bit sideways, so I thought I could simply save pre-assault (manually).  I thought wrong--when I loaded up my save Arthur was in a totally different location and the camp had disappeared (a sort of minor annoyance because the camps do respawn at different points).  I guess I just have to live with the consequences of my actions (I accidentally shot the dude chained to the bed in the basement of the gun store in Rhodes in one playthrough...it was stupid, but completely undoable).

Even with these faults, I still love RDR2.  The world is amazing and it's easy to spend countless hours exploring, hunting, or taking on the numerous challenges.  I guess the story and characters are okay too...jkjk...we all know that in true Rockstar fashion they are great.  I have no idea when my current playthrough will end, I'm just biding my time with Arthur and trying to find things I've missed in other playthroughs.  I've had some mixed success--I think I'm up to 4 found dinosaur bones and I've been on a search for those damn cigarette cards (I've never completed a single entire set in any of my several playthroughs).  RDR2 lives on my PC and always will--irritations and all.