Red Dead Redemption II dropped last night, October 26. The most anticipated game of 2018, a sequel seven (seven!) years in the making, was finally released to the public. My friends and I stood outside GameStop for about 20 minutes, in the 36 degree weather, while we waited to finally get our hands on the long-awaited sequel to the incredible Red Dead Redemption.
There were around 50 other people there, all waiting for the same thing. I talked to some of them, and I noticed something surprising. Everyone was there to get Red Dead II, but everyone had different expectations for the game. Some were really excited to play the story. Some were anticipating the game's multiplayer, which launches in November. One guy I talked to said he was really looking forward to hunting, a staple of the last game. Another guy said he couldn't wait to play poker, and I had to agree. Poker is just a minigame, but it's better than many games that are fully centered around the card game.
It struck me then just how much detail and care Rockstar has injected into its franchise. Most games, even the best ones, are specialty store experiences. They focus on one central concept, and while they might have some peripherally related content, there usually isn't a whole lot of branching outside of the game's main idea.
Red Dead Redemption was different. It's probably the same thing with Grand Theft Auto, although I've never really gotten into those games. But Red Dead takes its central concept, which is the idea of a cowboy in a dying Wild West, and expands on it to go in many different directions. Poker and hunting were huge timesinks in the last game, and I'm sure they will be in this one as well. You could rob trains, patrol towns on the lookout for outlaws at night, and take down gangs in epic shootouts. The game really managed to do it all, and it did it so well. If most games are specialty store experiences, then Red Dead is a big-name retailer, almost Wal-Mart like.
I didn't get too far into the game last night (the install was something like 85 GB, so it took a while), but I like what I've seen so far (MINOR SPOILER). I'm still on the tutorial, which, in Hateful Eight fashion, is about surviving through a blizzard. The shooting is vastly improved over the last game, and the first person mode is surprisingly fun. I figured it would be gimmicky, but I might enjoy it more than the third person camera. I'm sure this will be my Game of the Year, and I can't wait to sink my teeth into it. Rockstar blew me away with Red Dead Redemption in 2010, and I fully expect Red Dead II to be even better.
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