Red Dead Redemption 2

You hear a lot of great things about this game. I've never really cared much about cowboys or horses, so I never picked it up. Then it went on sale and I thought, "Well, maybe it would be a good idea to play something that doesn't fit my interests at all." After the first two hours, I genuinely thought I had wasted 15€, but I kept playing. And boy, was I wrong. RDR2 might be [b]one of the best[/b] - if not [u]THE best[/u] - story-driven game I've ever played. [h3]More importantly, it's the game that taught me how to enjoy video games again[/h3] The pacing feels incredibly slow at the beginning, but makes perfect sense when you look back on it. You have to let go of the urge to get things done and check off quests one after another. You [b]don't rush[/b] through the main quests to finish the story. You're exploring the world and the characters. You simply exist in this world. [b]And that's something you really have to be willing to embrace.[/b] Don't get me wrong, the main story itself is fantastic, but honestly, I don't think it's what makes this game so special. The real magic happens between the main missions: in the small encounters, the random people you meet along the road, the places you stumble across and all the little moments. At times this game almost felt like therapy. It's a weird mix of brutality and cozy game - and somehow, both sides fit together perfectly. I would have never guessed that I could feel so comfortable, so much at ease in a game like this. The characters are another huge part of why I [i]love this game with every fibre of my being[/i]. You might hate some of the characters when you first meet them. But the more time you spend with them, the more you understand that they're just people. They have their flaws, they make mistakes, they can be frustrating as hell - but you'll love them for exactly what they are: human. And then there's [b]Arthur Morgan[/b], our protagonist. You're not the hero of this story. You're not the villain, either. [u]You're just some guy trying to live his life[/u]. He's not perfect. He makes terrible decisions, hurts people, gets angry, but he's also kind, caring, funny and thoughtful. An incredible main character you can grow alongside. If a game can make me finish a 67-hour playthrough and immediately think, "[b]I want to do that again, but so much slower[/b]," I think that says everything. [i]Also, this game might be for the horse girlies. Started it not caring about horses at all, ended it as a horse girl myself.[/i]

This is, without question, my favourite game of all time. The story, the world, Arthur as a character, all of it is genuinely untouchable. I do think it's worth being upfront about the PC port, however. I'm running a decent rig, and still had to work through switching between DX12 and Vulkan, setting a proper frame cap, adjusting driver settings, and eventually dealing with a corrupted settings file that was causing the game to crash on launch entirely. It took a fair amount of trial and error to get right. It shouldn't be this difficult for a game from 2018 to run well on modern hardware. Once everything is properly configured though, the game runs very well. It's smooth, looks fantastic, and hitching is now minimal. So this isn't a lost cause by any means, just go in preparing to spend some time tuning it rather than assuming it will run perfectly out of the box (although it does happen). It's a worthwhile effort for a game of this quality.

I don’t know what else to say about this game. No amount of praise feels enough. What blows my mind even more is how much thought went into the characters. After hearing Dan Houser talk about the writing and character development on the Lex Fridman podcast, I started appreciating the game even more. I don’t think RDR2 needs a recommendation. If you have a gaming library, this game belongs in it.

[b] Red Dead Redemption 2 [/b] is mainly about its amazing world, which can keep you playing for many hours. It's very colorful and varied, and almost every part of the map has something to offer, from the huge number of animals and different types of plants to side activities, collectibles, and easter eggs. The world really feels alive, and it's easy to forget about the main story and just ride around, checking out what you can find around the next corner. A big plus is the amount of things you can do outside the main story. Hunting, exploring, random encounters, and all kinds of small events can turn even a normal journey into something interesting. You never really know what you might find along the way, so even traveling to a specific place can end up becoming something completely different. It's one of those worlds where you don't need a specific goal to have a good time. The huge amount of detail also makes a big difference. Animals behave differently, nature changes depending on the area, and each region has its own character. Towns, small settlements, forests, mountains, and empty areas don't feel like they were only added to fill the map. Because of that, exploring the world is genuinely enjoyable, and sometimes the world itself can be more interesting than some of the main missions. The main story is fine, but I wouldn't say it completely blew me away. There are moments that can be interesting, but for me, it wasn't the main reason I wanted to spend time in the game. Without the huge number of side activities and such a well designed world, the main story could sometimes feel simply boring. Even so, the biggest strength of Red Dead Redemption 2 for me is its world. It's full of life, details, and things to discover, so you can spend dozens of hours there without feeling like you're doing the same thing over and over again. It's a game where you can easily start with one goal and, a few hours later, realize that you've ended up doing something completely different. That freedom and huge amount of extra content are what make spending time in this world so enjoyable.