Red Dead Redemption Review

Rockstar Games (Grand Theft Auto developers) bring a unique element to the open world genre with their latest title. Roaming around freely in a virtual world has never felt or looked so good. Red Dead Redemption tells the story of a former outlaw, John Marston, a man who is abruptly thrust back into a past life he can't leave behind. This western epic is based in the earlier period of the 20th century when lawlessness and debauchery was rife on the western planes of America.

Red Dead Redemption features wide planes and prairies for players to explore, along with plenty of frontier towns and dangerous mountain passes - each offering fulfilling action to keep you stuck to your screen for hours. Along the way, players will experience the heat of gunfights and battles, meet a superb cast of memorable characters, struggle against the harshness of wonderfully portrayed wildernesses, and ultimately pick their own unstable path through a classic tale about the death of the Wild West and the gunslingers that populated it.

There is rarely a dull moment in this title, with something happening wherever you turn to. It does not matter if you are just trotting around aimlessly or riding your stallion through to a different location, you could easily find yourself distracted by external elements. Cougars, coyotes, wolves, and even snakes can be dangerous if they see you before you see them. All these creatures unavoidably cross your path, and whether they're lone animals or hunting as a pack, their behaviour is always believable. You can find yourself thrown off the back of your horse as it reacts to a surprising attack from a rattlesnake.

You can hunt these animals, not just for the fun factor but also for some good cash. You can sell the body parts to a store owner the next time you're in town. You get rewarded for various other challenges as well including, sharp shooter challenges, hunting challenges and treasure hunting challenges among others.

There are a limitless side missions to enjoy in the game. You might choose to gamble while in town, or decide to do some bounty hunting taking down those wanted criminals. Around the next bend might be a carriage of random strangers being robbed by bandits, its poor passengers crying out for help. Opportunities for gun fights and stand offs can find you even when you're in the middle of nowhere. Most of these optional missions will offer some tangible reward in the form of weapons, money or reputation.

Your reputation is very important in this game, with your actions affecting the way the environment interacts with you. If you play through the missions in a way that is honourable, rescuing innocent civilians, bounty hunting without killing, helping out a few sheriffs here and there - you will become famous. People will receive you with open arms when you enter their towns and might not alert the authorities if you steal a horse. It is possible to play through most of the game (if not all of it) without being branded an outlaw. This of course isn't always a good thing because other gunslingers trying to prove themselves and build their own reputation will always want to challenge you or else bandits will try to get you.

Play as a real outlaw, taking down everything in your way, good or bad and you will gain the notoriety that goes well with that behaviour. Every crime you commit raises the bounty on your head as you get closer and closer to the top of the Most Wanted list. The only way to clear your name is to visit a telegraph operator and either pay the amount of your bounty yourself as a fine or present him with a letter of pardon.

The graphics are simply amazing. The characters' expressive faces and realistic body movements (this goes for people as well as horses) makes it all easy on the eyes. The attention to detail is evident in the breathtaking sunsets and in the way the dusty hills come to life. The voice acting is brilliant; and you might even enjoy listening to stories about the history of the world from some characters in the game. The sound track is also great, adding to the game's authentic experience.

One can draw similarities in the controls between Read Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto, although while playing through the western epic one can tell that there are definitely some understated improvements that were made to enhance these controls. If you love Grand Theft Auto you'll love this game. It's GTA with horses and carriages!

The occasional bugs and glitches that you will find in the game are minor and far between. They will not take much away from the great title that this game is. Overall, Red Dead Redemption is a great title offering hours of gameplay and a great story with multiple climaxes. This game sets the benchmark for all other Western open-world games to come. Rockstar games used the potential of western games with excellent results in this title.

This game is available on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 consoles only. Check out Bob Shop Gaming for other cool games.

Buy Red Dead Redemption now  

 

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