Wow. Okay. It's hard for me to put into written words what this game has been for me. I clearly see a before and after for this game in my life, as for many Zelda BOTW or other titles have been.

RDR2 wasn't just a game for me: it was almost a life experience. Many gamers play competitive games online with their friends, accumulating hundreds of hours in a short time. It's always been different for me: I've always preferred singleplayer games and smaller, more completable objectives. I rarely completely complete an open-world game, and even more rarely play it that much.

I played RDR2 for 280 hours in plus or minus 7 months. Started prompted by a girl I was dating after years of procrastination, I decided to start it and quickly got into a fistfight with the character control system, stiff as a piece of leather left out in the sun. But when you take control of it, it becomes a bit like when you see an anime where they pilot a mecha and you wonder how they make it do so many things with only two controllers. RDR2 is the same: When you learn how to control walking, shooting, riding, everything becomes intuitive.

I've always hated side quests and collectible collections in the GTA series games. With RDR2 Rockstar once again didn't create much incentive in completing these challenges for players who want to get cool power-ups or things like that. On the contrary, it continues to tease you as usual with almost ridiculous rewards. But I didn't care: I caught every legendary fish, killed every legendary animal, found every fossil, every dreamcatcher, every cigarette sticker. Why? Why not? These activities would never have appealed to me normally, but in this game they become part of the world, a world that you feel part of, that you want to participate in, solve the problems, understand how it works. That doesn't happen often for me. It definitely didn't happen with GTA V (absolutely overrated game).

The story, without spoilers, is one of the most engaging things I've played. While predictable, Arthur Morgan's character has perhaps become one of my all-time favorites. Big, angry, but also kind and ready to help (in his own way). I know he can be played in more violent ways, but they don't make sense to me. The personal journey Arthur goes through is that of a character from books, from movies. It evolves before our eyes, especially if you take the time to play the game slowly.

The game world, with the fact that the quick journey is not immediately unlocked, pushes you to enjoy the scenery, relax, ride mindlessly. What I was saying before about forever changing how I see games is here: when I played Zelda BOTW years ago I liked it, but I didn't spend too much time exploring the world, I got bored. A few weeks ago I tried it again, preparing for the sequel, and the game looked completely different with my new eyes. I was no longer running toward objectives, no longer using only the bare minimum of weapons and items to survive. Within a couple of hours I was already a different player, observing what was around me, calculating how to kill enemies more efficiently, LIVING in that game world. Completely absurd and beautiful. Thank you Red Dead Redemption 2 for opening my eyes. I will remember you forever.

Confession moment: the Zelda games I have finished can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Their structure, at least when I was younger, sometimes confused me and, a mix of not reading where I had to go and inexperience, made me abandon them.

Tunic stands as a Zelda-like game but with a twist that everyone knows by now: the game starts very much like the very first Zelda, but gives the player no objective, no instructions. Instructions are provided to the player with pages from a game manual of the game itself, a meta idea that really made me smile and created that sense of 'let me check the instruction booklet' in me that I haven't had in a long time. The game is fluid, fun and a real pleasure to explore, precisely because it doesn't tell the player much about what to do. The story, despite not having ONE line of dialogue, is perfectly expressed with the environment and the short videos, which never cut through the action.

The game is a treat for those who like to find hidden secrets that require pen and paper to find. Without making spoilers, you'll reach the end of the game wanting to find every secret and, as mentioned, you'll have to take notes to do so, much like FEZ players did at the time.

Absolutely recommended game to generate in everyone that sense of passion for discovery that few games give us anymore!