Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Ambitious"

Overview:
Red Dead Redemption is a game about revenge, payback, and, well, redemption. You play as John Marston, a man who has returned to the west with plans to get back at those who ruined his family. The game starts with you narrowly surviving a confrontation where you wake up at the hands of a rancher. This is where you spend your first moments getting used to the gameplay and controls, but soon after you are put in the middle of the action which really never lets up. Sure there are similarities to GTA4, namely the game engine and controls, but forget GTA4 right now because Rockstar takes their formula to a new era, as well as a more focused and polished design with Red Dead Redemption.

Gameplay:
While playing Red Dead Redemption, most of the time is spent on horseback, but proves to be just as action packed as any other possible mode of transportation. Because you are in the late stages of the wild west, weaponry ranges from your standard six-shooter to machine pistols and even a gatling gun or two. While the action packed main missions are the core of the game, even side quest hold up; who hasn't wanted to lasso a man from horseback, hogtie him, then bring him in for a nice paycheck.

Graphics:
Beautiful is the only word for the way Red Dead Redemption looks. Up close, Marston looks great, but the true winner here is the surrounding environment. Sand is shifted around in the open desert areas while bushes flow around you as you run to chase an outlaw. Graphics are not the reason to own RDR, but you will be pleasantly surprised when you first step foot into each new territory.

Sound:
The way a game sounds has never personally swayed my thoughts on its greatness much, but talk about bonus points. Everything in the game make a relatively realistic noise, but the ambient music and sparse classic western songs are really a welcome addition. One area where I feel sound can make or break a game is voice acting, and RDR does it so good I've chosen not to skip even the most minor cutscene to hear what has to be said.

Story:
The narrative in RDR is one that will make you keep playing in even the most grueling and stressful missions. The main mission is good enough to make you want to finish the game, but the real highlight is the fact that each side mission is worth seeing through to the end; hard to say of even the most deep and compelling RPGs.

Ending Statement:
Anyone looking for a fairly lengthy look into a western themed action game would be advised to pick up Red Dead Redemption; a game which flows brilliantly do to the polish in all the small but noticable areas.

*I did hit one bug in a cutscene in which a woman who was speaking walked off at the end of the scene but also continued to stay where she started (so there were two of the same woman at the end of the scene). Funny, but did not impact gameplay so I did not include it in the review.