[EDIT: I never bothered with RED DEAD ONLINE, so I don't care about any of that drama. 600h of pure SP.]

10/10: A BEAUTIFUL GAME; WITH A RICH STORY TO TELL

This game asks you to take it slow, to enjoy the scenery and to take the world in.
If you are averse to slow animations, immersive interactions and a general slow pace this isn't for you.
If you are willing to give it a real shot, to take the time the game asks of you. You'll find something special.

Red Dead Redemption 2, is by far Rockstar's strongest narrative game.
Missions should be viewed as interactive movie scenes as it's less about finding unique solutions to the problem presented and more going through the motion. This might not be to everyone's liking but it's how the story missions are structured. The Open World, is where player freedom comes in.

The level of immersion you get from the writing, to the world and how you interact with that world, leaves other Open World games lacking in so many ways. Just the simple act of being able to "Greet" or "Antagonize" every NPC, seems like such a minor thing but it adds so much to the experience.
The amount of talent Rockstar can find for the voice cast and then make use of with their incredible script and direction, is awe inspiring.

I beat it on the PS4 after 140 hours of play with 89% completion.
Am currently going through it again on PC, sitting at 121 hours of play with 64% completion.
This time I intend to leave the game once I see that 100% after about 500 hours of play.
[EDIT: I have 100% the game on PC and PS4 and am replaying the game on both.]


If you're truly not willing to buy the game full price but do have an interest, then I encourage you to grab it during any sale event. You will not be disappointed.

Performance is smooth though the amount of frames I get isn't in the hundreds.
I get frames ranging from the low 40 to the high 60. Settings are a mix of mids & ultra.
Even then, the game world and characters look beautiful.
So if you're willing to swallow your pride and lower some setting here and there to get that stable frame rate, you'll have a grand time playing this.

RIG [at the time of the original review back in 2018]:
GTX 1080ti,
I7-7700K 4.20GHz,
32GB Ram,
2560 x 1440p, 144hz monitor