Red Dead Redemption Part Deux

[Baddar]

Typically, I'm working all over the weekend so won't get to play properly until Monday or Tuesday, but I should at the very least get everything installed on release day.

[Your Mom]

If I understand right if you go digital you can download it right now just not play obviously. I feel like I did that with Spider-Man and Odyssey but sadly I already can't remember and Odyssey was only 3 weeks ago  

[Baddar]

I'll get it on disc. It'll be £10 cheaper and being able to play it immediately on release isn't really beneficial to me.

[FLiam]

I didn’t realise it was out this week. 

Will have to wait until next Friday to play. 

[Draevyn]

I have to wait until my birthday at least which is like two weeks after it comes out. This might be the first game I beat in about a year and a half.

[MDK]

Just seen leaked footage of a horse taking a shit.

[Baddar]

Spoilers ffs

[MDK]

8 minutes ago, Baddar said:

Spoilers ffs

 

[Bobfoc]

Trend followers. Metal Gear Solid V did it first.

[Lint]

Inside Rockstar Games' Culture Of Crunch

[Baddar]

Seems like a brutal place to work, but I'd guess it's no different at another major game studio. 

[Rocky]

In under 24hrs, I should be home from work staring at my horses balls while it takes a shit. This game could be borderline fetishism.

[probablyoliver]

97 on Opencritic.

I think it's gonna be alright guys.

[Bobfoc]

I've read a few of these reviews. I really don't want to be Mr. Negative here, but I'm getting a few GTA IV vibes.

Something I've noticed a lot is mention of the controls being not particularly great, and there's also a lot of talk of large sections of the game not being much fun to play through. Not only that, but more than one review has said that the story drags signficantly. The consensus seems to be that it's a technically stunning game with a well crafted open world, but I'm not seeing many references to fun. If that's the case, I'm wondering if this is a game that will see a backlash once people grow used to all the technical wizardry.

I know I seem downbeat, and I don't mean to be. I'm comparing it with GTA IV, which is a game I still liked, despite its flaws. I'll be intrigued to see the difference between people's initial reactions and their subsequent opinions in a few weeks' time.

[probablyoliver]

....what reviews are you reading? Everything I've seen has been glowing praise.

[Adam]

GTA IV was pretty damn good to be fair. I thought people's complaints about things like the driving mechanics in that game were overblown.

[Owen]

GTA IV is too brown. 2/10.

[apsham]

God dammit, it's minor but it has the same issue that Odyessy has - ironically with horses. That being that the same button that you use to mount the horse is the same button that you use to do something you probably don't want to do. In here it's rob people, and in AC it's assassinate.

[Bobfoc]

1 hour ago, Ollie said:

....what reviews are you reading? Everything I've seen has been glowing praise.

They are praising it, but there are little statements here and there that point to unnecessary tedium. In and of itself, that's unremarkable, but games with this kind of hype behind them often get put on a higher pedestal than some might feel they deserve by reviewers. It's been the same with almost every massive recent release, including GTA IV and V, Breath of the Wild, Bioshock: Infinite and Metal Gear Solid V, all of which were games I enjoyed, but whose flaws seemed to be glossed over in a sentence or two by major reviewers.

Since I posted my initial comment, I've watched Jim Sterling's video review, and it backs up some of my concerns. He says that the open world is great and the missions are well put together, but there are irritations that built up in between. For example, you have to sit through a long animation every time you skin an animal, and the hunting process is a slow and laboured one. You also can't whistle for your horse unless you're within a few metres of it, and you can't change outfits when you're travelling quickly on a horse. These are "realism" mechanics that probably make the game more frustrating to play.

Do they sound like dealbreakers? Absolutely not. The game still sounds fine. They are, however, reasons to remember that this is a creative endeavour made by humans trying out various ideas, some of which will work and some of which won't. Everything suggests that Red Dead Redemption is a very good video game, but not something that will fill the void in our souls and make our lives immeasurably better.

[9 to 5]

It will fill the void in my soul once I shoot @Ollie's horse between it's eyes.