Red Dead Redemption: The Complete Experience Review

With the Grand Theft Auto series taking a much needed break, Rockstar decided to go in a different direction in creating their latest free roaming game, Red Dead Redemption (RDR). RDR offers an experience unlike any other Rockstar game. Set in the Wild Wild West era, RDR is about John Marston, an outlaw that had been left for dead by his gang, and is now being manipulated by the US government to kill his old gang. If he refuses, he will spend the rest of his life in jail. Throughout his adventures, John comes into contact with many different characters; some that will love him and some that will use him.  To make things worse, John’s family is being held in captivity by Uncle Sam until he completes his mission. This gives John another reason to kill his old gang besides just leaving him to die.

One of the best things about RDR, is how amazing and detailed the environment is. The vistas steal the show in this game as you can ride your horse through deserts, plans, forests, and snowy mountains as well the big cites and small towns of the early 1900s. The sound design in Red Dead is spot on,  from the galloping of horses, to the different sounds each gun makes when fired. As for controls, the scheme is similar to GTA IV, but it has its own variant. Instead of using the controller pad to cycle through your weapons, you hit your right trigger to pull up your weapon wheel and can pop weapons out faster, then there is the Dead Eye Targeting mode. In Dead Eye, everything around John Slows down and you can then place shots with pin-point accuracy. There are a wide range of weapons ranging from pistols, revolvers, shotguns, sniper rifles, hunting rifles, and special weapons added to game from DLC packs. You can even ride a horse after you either break in or steal one, and raise its stamina to ride it longer, faster and have it survive longer.

In addition to playing Red Dead Redemption, I also played the Undead Nightmare DLC. The Undead Nightmare DLC is a whole new story that turns everything about Red Dead Redemption on its ear by adding zombies. Just when you thought that the story was “completed” it’s far from it. John’s wife and his son have been infected by Uncle with some kind of disease and John must find a cure. Of course, this isn’t as easy as it sounds because cities and towns turn out to be barren and infected with zombies. You will encounter survivors throughout the game who save what little food and ammo they while trying to make it out of the situation alive if they can. Also, not only are people infected but the animals are as well. Add in some mythical creatures that roam the land, and you better think twice about what you try to kill.

Besides single player, RDR has a huge multi-player mode. Multi-player offers a seamless experience as you start in free roam which severs as the hub/lobby for players. You can hunt, and raid gang hideouts with your posse, (a party made of six of your fellow cowboys) to boost your level and gain new weapons, skins and horses. In total there are over 20 game modes with all of the DLC packs, Outlaws to the end, Legends and killers, Liars and Cheats, the Free Roam Pack and of course Undead nightmare has over 15 modes and variants to the game. Shoot out, Gang shoot outs, Outlaws vs Lawmen, Co-op missions, Stronghold, Undead Overrun, Land grab, add hours and hours of gaming to the title.

Overall, if you looking for a unforgettable experience put up Red Dead Redemption. It’s a great game and has even been dubbed game of the year by the Spike Video Game Awards. This is a must play and a must buy for the holiday season if you’ve missed it.
#HMU
AJ aka DJ KILLZOWN JONES
Launch Trailer
[tube] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gBctl1h_2o [/tube]
Undead Nightmare Launch Trailer
[tube] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Di2eOr-kqs [/tube]