Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

20 to 40 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Amazing"

Rockstar Games have been known to release controversial, if not scene-starting titles. Red Dead Redemption (RDR) is no exception. Spinning a tale across the West and into Mexico, you won't forget the truly tragic story, memorable characters and terrific game play that make this game worth a standing ovation.
Story
From the word go, the story line is mysterious and intrusive; all you know is your name, all you have are the clothes on your back, and all you want is a bullet in someone's head. Of course, being set in the harsh wasteland of 1911's dying Great West, nothing goes to plan. After your brief introduction to 'Western Culture', John Marston, the lovable protagonist sporting a newly redeemed consciousness, is left for dead on the side of the road.
Brought back to life by an innocent rancher, John begins to pull his life back together, and you will find yourself shepherding cattle, scaring of coyotes and breaking in horses. Seeking answers from man who wronged you, you will find yourself venturing across the West and discovering a deeper and deeper story into an unjust and cruel world. For the sake of your own enjoyment, much of the story will not be disclosed here, as it needs to be experienced for its full potential to shine.
The only negative factor regarding the story is that the progress of the story can slow down at times and can leave you wondering why exactly you are doing a certain task. Also some character introductions are not done very well, however this is made up for by the characters that are.
Game play
It's rare to find a game that you actually enjoy doing seemingly 'nothing' in. Dawdling along the sprawling country sides and baron plains may sound boring, but almost definitely keeps you well entertained. When not taking in the scenery, you can take John Marston along on a plethora of side missions and challenges. These can vary from shooting horse rings, to taking down a grizzly bear with just a combat knife (a lot harder than what you think!). These activities are numerous and easily accessible, and you won't find it tedious because each activity seems uniquely set up.
A notable side missions is the ability to take on (and take in) bounties. This requires you to wait around town until a bounty notice is posted up, observe the culprit at hand, and then decide if you are game enough to take it on. It's then your responsibility to rustle in that person (quite literally) by attempting to take that bounty in using your trusty lasso. Of course that bounty is stocked with company and they won't take kindly to you stealing their leader. This makes for one epic horseback chase!
All firearms and melee weapons function incredibly realistically; the sounds, sights and atmosphere are done to the utmost perfection. Never before has it felt so rewarding pumping lead into unsuspecting bandits with a Springfield rifle. Another beneficial feature is Dead-eye, which works very similar to functions used to 'Max-Payne' and 'Matrix' series. Charging up your Dead-Eye meter allows you to slow down time and pin point exact firing positions on targets. This makes for a strategic approach to game play.
Game play only suffers from similar reasons to 'Grand Theft Auto IV'; John Marston's controls can become quite irritating. Simple actions like ascending stair cases or maneuvering through doors can be more a challenge then actual combat and incredibly frustrating. These implications are only made worse when your horse mysteriously disappears and won't respond to your calling or your weaponry selection list continuously resets to default. But this never takes away from the down-right addictive game play.
Graphics
Functioning in comparison to Grand Theft Auto IV, RDR looks quite similar with some boosted features.
This is not to say the graphics are expected or dated. The West looks truly life like, with immense detail placed into every cactus and blade of grass. The draw out distance is unbelievable; panning the camera along the plains at sunset will take your breath away. To put it simply, the graphics in RDR are beautiful and will enthral you at every moment.
Multiplayer
When you are said and done venturing the West alone, it's time to saddle up with the posse and reclaim the sands together! Multiplayer in RDR is what puts this title head and shoulders above so many other multiplayer games. Once activating the Multiplayer mode, you are thrown into 'Free Roam', where you can simply run around pointlessly with other buck-a-roos, form possess and complete hundreds of challenges that assist in levelling your character.
Multiplayer scraps away with the characters featured in the single story. It allows you to choose your own avatar character, title to match and noble a steed. Of course a lot of these are locked and require a higher experience level to access.
Death matches, team matches and capture the bag (reference to another standard multiplayer mode) are all accessible to compete in and all come with a unique twist; a Mexican stand off! That's right; you can break your nerve against other players and empty barrels of bullets in mere seconds. This makes for some intense and instant action. All Multiplayer modes contribute to gaining experience and assist you in leveling your character.
Multiplayer is almost endless, and contains so many enjoyable aspects it needs to be experienced firsthand.
Overall Presentation
RDR is a title that will be talked about for some time, and to put it simply, you need to get upon the band wagon and join in the fun. From its believable story to realistic game play. From the magical graphics to the addictive multiplayer, RDR will have you set for a long time to come.