Review: Red Dead Redemption 2

Part of what made Red Dead Redemption great was its characters. John Marshton was one of the better protagonists in a Rockstar game, which is not exactly a small feat given some of the other games they've put out. Giving up his outlaw life to be a family man after a bank robbery went awry, he maintains his tough exterior but seems to be making an honest attempt at being a decent human, even if doing so within the confines of the law is somewhat negotiable. The bar was set high enough with Marshton where the only thing I'm mildly worried about with Red Dead Redemption 2 is whether or not the new protagonist can match him. Aside from the lead there were numerous other characters. Nigel West Dickens was one of Marshton's more entertaining companions. Dickens was a swindler and snake oil salesman if there ever was one, but he did assist John on a few occasions, even if it was painfully obvious John wanted nothing more than to pistol whip him.

Bringing it full circle, I do not want to see Red Dead Redemption 2 pull a Magnificent Seven, even if this means making a bad guy version of the Seven. Which right now it’s looking that way. Seven cowboys riding off into the distance? The Magnificent Seven (I’m talking the 1960 version) is a great standalone tale on its own, while also having borrowed from a tale not its own. If you haven’t heard of Seven Samurai go watch it immediately, stop reading this article. While video games are drawing more and more from film, Rockstar has proved they can develop games that draw from certain pools while keeping it fresh and original.

Nintendo and Bandai Namco shook the Open world game beginner guide of Pokemon in 2014 with the announcement of Pokken Tournament, a brand new fighting game. Obviously there was a lot of excitement over this cross-over, until we found out that it was going to be Japan-only. Even worse, it would only be released in arcades. We’re hoping that Nintendo and Bandai Namco announce this game for the Wii U, and that will launch in North America and Europe.

It was the moments of quiet that were most enjoyable, just wandering the prairie through Redemption was enough to satisfy western fantasies. Both games also took place in the classic dusty west audiences have come to imagine from spaghetti westerns, now veering toward more recent films such as The Revenant, which seems to be the direction Red Dead Redemption 2 is going. Not a bad thing.


If you're like me and usually seem to have a rather large bounty on your head, then you might need to make (or loot) a quick buck. If you're in the vicinity of Fort Wallace, then head West, cross the river, and go up the mountain pass at Window Rock. You'll find some cave paintings. Arthur will make a note of them in his journal, and from there, cross the river and head just Southeast of the "I" in Ambarino on the

Before diving fully into my gripes with something that only has just shy over a minute of game footage that’s been shown, let me explain what made the other two games so special. Both, Red Dead Revolver/Redemption were games that touched on a part of American mythos in the best of ways. Even other cultural mythos play into what makes these games so great, with many different backgrounds showcased. Each game is a unique tail of one man’s quest deeply personal to them. Not only exploring the characters presented fully, but also putting forth some of the best storytelling for video games of such a genre at each respective time. Each felt like a true American western tale.


One of the more gritty locations in Red Dead Redemption 2 is called the Meteor House. Dubbed so, because everybody inside the house appears to have been utterly disemboweled by a stray meteor. If you've got a mind to check out the scene, you can head just West of Brandywine Drop, keeping South of the Abandoned Trading P

It’s safe to say that Red Dead Redemption 2 is easily the most visually-impressive game Rockstar has ever created. While it’s difficult for open World game news world games to compare to more linear, focused experiences due to the amount of content shoved onto screen at once, there were times when I thought I was playing a CG movie.