Rockstar games has once again made an absolute banger of a video game. Red Dead Redemption 2 is as close to perfection as one can get with a video game. The story and its amazing cast of characters had me super invested. Honestly, RDR2 might be the best in this regard, but that’s a debate for another day. Even the stranger missions are awesome. Hell, some of them are better than a lot of the main ones. Exploring RDR2’s map has probably been the most fun I have had exploring an open world out of any video game. I love how realistic this game is. Graphics look like real life. There’s a weight system. There’s a body temperature system where you’ll need to wear the appropriate clothing depending on the climate. Your hair and beard grow and you can chose to trim it. It’s not like GTAV where you can go to the barber to grow hair and wear undies in the snow. Your gun gets dirty the more you use it, and you’ll have to clean from time to time. The only thing missing is a piss and shit mechanic.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is so close to perfection it hurts. What’s setting it back is the requirements for the 100% completion. I want to clarify that as of January 16, 2024, the day this review was written, I have yet to 100% completed the game. I know the requirements and that alone should be enough to judge.
I 100% complete games because I want to experience everything the developers put into their games. That and to boast about my platinum trophy count. I don’t know why but Rockstar Games aims to make their games’ 100% as long and tedious as possible to where completionists such as myself want to die. GTAV’s platinum trophy was the most tedious one I earned. It has held that title ever since July 9th, 2019, and none of the 93 platinum trophies I earned afterwards as even come close to swiping that title away. That is until I played RDR2. You must earn 70 gold medals again out of the 104 main missions. Complete 90 challenges and these challenges are not simple. Collect 30 dinosaur bones. Catch all 13 legendary fish. Just like real life, fishing sucks. Complete 6 exotic tasks for Algernon Wasp which having is pick up a whole lot of plants. How fun. Find 20 dreamcatchers. Find 10 rock carvings. Complete 5 hunting requests which I swear to God is rigged. Hunting animals is probably my favorite aspect of this game, especially the legendary animals. For the 3rd hunting request, I needed an opossum. For 2 hours, I have found nothing but skunks. For the 4th hunting request, I need a skunk. I went to the same location where I was hunting opossums because I was finding a lot of skunks. So, finding a skunk should be super easy and quick, right? NOPE! For another 2 hours, all I was finding was opossums. Don’t even get me started on the tiny birds you need a small arrow to get a perfect kill. You can never sneak up on them. Obviously, they’ll fly away. Good luck trying to kill a bird flying with a bow. So instead, you’ll need the varmint rifle and the buck antler trinket and pray to the RNG gods you’ll get a perfect carcass and not a good one. Fucking stupid. It should be noted that I didn’t include all the requirements for the 100%, only what I found to be tedious. Everything else you earn just by playing. I’m happy the 100% can be completed in more than 3 days like Spider-Man 2 but Rockstar, you do not have to make it this lengthy and monotonous. This is the number one thing I am most worried about GTAVI.
I want to end this review by stating that I have yet to play Red Dead Online. I will do a separate review and rating because I feel as though the games and my feelings towards them are so different that they might as well be two different games entirely.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is so close to perfection it hurts. What’s setting it back is the requirements for the 100% completion. I want to clarify that as of January 16, 2024, the day this review was written, I have yet to 100% completed the game. I know the requirements and that alone should be enough to judge.
I 100% complete games because I want to experience everything the developers put into their games. That and to boast about my platinum trophy count. I don’t know why but Rockstar Games aims to make their games’ 100% as long and tedious as possible to where completionists such as myself want to die. GTAV’s platinum trophy was the most tedious one I earned. It has held that title ever since July 9th, 2019, and none of the 93 platinum trophies I earned afterwards as even come close to swiping that title away. That is until I played RDR2. You must earn 70 gold medals again out of the 104 main missions. Complete 90 challenges and these challenges are not simple. Collect 30 dinosaur bones. Catch all 13 legendary fish. Just like real life, fishing sucks. Complete 6 exotic tasks for Algernon Wasp which having is pick up a whole lot of plants. How fun. Find 20 dreamcatchers. Find 10 rock carvings. Complete 5 hunting requests which I swear to God is rigged. Hunting animals is probably my favorite aspect of this game, especially the legendary animals. For the 3rd hunting request, I needed an opossum. For 2 hours, I have found nothing but skunks. For the 4th hunting request, I need a skunk. I went to the same location where I was hunting opossums because I was finding a lot of skunks. So, finding a skunk should be super easy and quick, right? NOPE! For another 2 hours, all I was finding was opossums. Don’t even get me started on the tiny birds you need a small arrow to get a perfect kill. You can never sneak up on them. Obviously, they’ll fly away. Good luck trying to kill a bird flying with a bow. So instead, you’ll need the varmint rifle and the buck antler trinket and pray to the RNG gods you’ll get a perfect carcass and not a good one. Fucking stupid. It should be noted that I didn’t include all the requirements for the 100%, only what I found to be tedious. Everything else you earn just by playing. I’m happy the 100% can be completed in more than 3 days like Spider-Man 2 but Rockstar, you do not have to make it this lengthy and monotonous. This is the number one thing I am most worried about GTAVI.
I want to end this review by stating that I have yet to play Red Dead Online. I will do a separate review and rating because I feel as though the games and my feelings towards them are so different that they might as well be two different games entirely.