I'm finally playing Red Dead Redemption 2 and...

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I recently lost my job. Unfortunately it was my fault, I made a stupid decision, not maliciously or selfishly but foolish nonetheless. And it's a bummer because it was a rare example of a job I genuinely enjoyed. Anyway between that and other... certain current events, it's a time for being nervous and depressed.

So I figured why not escape into a fantasy world for a bit. I've had a hard time choosing games to sink into lately. I took a run at Bayonetta (which I've played before and love) but I stalled out on the last level and took a break. Games like Subnautica and No Man's Sky appeal to me aesthetically but the "run around constantly collecting garbage so you can figure out how to build stuff out of the garbage" is not a gameplay style I particularly enjoy. By that I mean it's the main focus of the gameplay, not that crafting systems in general turn me off, otherwise I wouldn't have picked up RDD2.

Anyway, I'm rambling, the point is I decided riding around a gorgeous countryside on a horse might be soothing. And I was right. I've heard plenty about how the story and missions can get wearying over time, but I mean, come on, it's a Rockstar Game, of course they do. But I'm taking a Slow As Molasses In January approach to this game, one or two story missions every few hours, with the other time being filled out just exploring, talking to strangers, hunting, getting killed by random bandit attacks, etc. Also keeping my facial hair trimmed to Tom Selleck-level mustachian perfection. I'm just gonna let this ridiculously detailed countryside by my escape.

Sometimes just taking your time, enjoying the sights, and letting things be calm and slow is the way to go.

 

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I'm still playing! I had tried to play the game once before a while back but stalled out, largely out of fear that I'd forget a lot of the rather complicated controls and mechanics if I didn't start again from the beginning. Now though I've played a decent ways into the second chapter of the game and I'm feeling it. Last night I spent a huge chunk of my playtime hanging out at a party my gang threw after I rescued one of the members. Then I tried to head north for a mission but found a lady who needed a ride back to her ranch, which threw me way off course. Then I played dominos for a while, won 3 bucks!

I'm weirdly into how slow moving the tabletop games are in this. I played poker a bit in RDR1 and found it frustrating but since then either my poker senses have attuned or they lightened the difficulty a bit because I can fairly reliably walk away from a table with a small profit at least. I was at a table with four other players, but three of them got very quickly busted out by this one guy who seemed to play very aggressively. And I was able to go all in on a modest hand that I nevertheless was pretty sure had him beat, and damn if he didn't take the bait. I walked out of there having doubled my pay in cost. Maybe it's that they made the personalities of your opponents more obvious to read. Either way, I enjoy the games quite a bit.

I also turned off the mini-map and just use the compass to navigate now. It still gives me a pretty obvious read on what trails I need to follow to get to my destination but I feel now like I'm looking more at the screen rather than the mini-map and as a result starting, slowly but surely, to recognize landmarks and familiar roads.

 

[Adrenaline]

The hair growth and maintenance in this game was pretty on point

 

[Trar]

Yeah I took like six months to finish the story and it was worth it. Gorgeous, fun game. I'll have to 100% it at some point, and I rarely do that for games as big as RDR2.

 

[air_show]

I'm still finding this game strangely absorbing. But first, a gift from Youtube:

My god the mean voice acting must have been fun to record.

I play my Arthur as generally polite and helpful, which mostly consists of making boring small talk that trails off, but decided that if the story missions are gonna force me to be Dutch's scary enforcer then I might as well play the part now and then so last night I picked a fight with some O'Driscolls outside the saloon and then just waited for the law to gun them down, then I intimidated any citizens in the area to have no witnesses to loot them. Then I got into a fight with the crazy mountain man in the saloon but to be fair I was just standing there eating almonds and he got hostile out of nowhere. Then I found another O'Driscoll body that apparently messed with the law as I was finishing up in the saloon, I thought there were no witnesses to me looting him but I ended up having to chase down a farmhand and intimidating him into staying silent. So it felt like a pretty authentic dangerous cowboy simulator. Then the next morning I trimmed my perfect mustache and went to meet with Marston about some sheep or whatever.

(It also took me a couple of reloads to not do stupid shit like hit R2 and instantly shoot the crazy bear man in the head when he picks a fist fight)


SECOND POST BASICALLY BUT I'LL JUST PUT IT HERE:

Also I remember trying to play poker in Red Dead 1 and just getting frustrated and giving up, but in Red Dead 2 I'm really digging it. I had a great time the other night after hanging around the camp chatting and choring with the other gang members all day and then starting a late night game of poker. It was me, Lenny, Pearson, and Strauss, all of them in their sleepwear. Lenny is a bad gambler, but luckily for him, Pearson is worse, because on literally the first hand he took all of Pearson's money. Thing is, Lenny falls for the exact tactics Pearson does so I took all of his money a turn or two after that. Then me and Strauss did a bunch of boring stingy hands and we quit the table. I felt like the personalities of the characters were all very genuine there and affected how that game played out so it was cool. The guys who play in the saloon are harder to read sometimes but every now and then I win some good money. It's fun, and I deliberately play it slow, not skipping any animations or anything. I've also played a mean game of Domino or two.

 

[lincolnic]

Then the next morning I trimmed my perfect mustache and went to meet with Marston about some sheep or whatever.

If there was ever an ideal way to end any story about RDR2, this is it.

 

[Ostrich]

I recently finished this one. It took me from late August to late October to conquer the story, which wasn't long at all, I suppose. I didn't mess around with the side missions and activities too much, but even then the game still has some beef to it. While I had a few of the big twists and turns spoiled for me months ago, the ride to get there was still well worth the adventure because of just how compelling and dynamic the gameplay and dialogue is.

@air_ride, I also used this game as a way to cope with some work/life stuff. It was absolutely great for that, so I'm there with you.

Spoiler: Some late/post game thoughts

I waited until the end of the game to travel down to the RDR1 portion of the map (Which I guess I was supposed to anyway since you'll get automatic attention from the law if you travel there as Arthur...I think. I never actually checked.) My first goal was to ride straight down into Mexico...until I realized it wasn't there. Which is fine, the map is awfully big as it is and there's still plenty to do. I still need to go back through there and explore, as it seems like there are plenty of small little story bits for Marston outside of his quest for the farm.

Also, I had the big twist about Arthur dying of tuberculosis spoiled for me about a year after the games release, so that part didn't come as a surprise. But the ride to get there was just so SAD. The way I played Arthur, it ended up as a sweet redemption story. Does any of that change if you choose to play Arthur as a jerk?

 

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Supposedly Arthur's honor level will determine his demeanor in dialogue at times, with him being more selfish and prone to anger if your honor is low (edit: I've watched a few scene comparisons and now I think it's more that he talks more pessimistic with low honor). I'm curious as to how much that happens and may look up a comparison video. Like when we rustled some sheep and the auctioneer broke our balls a little to get a cut of the profits to keep his mouth shut, Arthur got pretty intense and looked ready to start a fight over it, but John of all people played it smart and calm and haggled the guy's price down a bit to resolve the situation peacefully. I wonder if that's just a normal plot point, to show Arthur's used to getting what he wants through the usual enforcer tactics he uses and that John is smarter and more level-headed than he's been getting credit for, or if my middling honor is what caused him to react that way. I haven't been worried at all about spoilers because I know most of the broad strokes for the story through cultural osmosis and the existence of RDR1.

I've heard the most significant honor effect is the ending, determining the specifics of

Spoiler

how Arthur dies

and some of the dialogue of characters speaking of him afterward.

 

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So I’m playing the game without fast travel, at least that’s my plan for the foreseeable future. It makes the experience feel more “real” and the side activities less superfluous. I like being out on the road all day and going “ok, better hunt some game for dinner or stop by the nearest town for a meal” and such. And it makes me think about where I’m going and what I plan to accomplish there. But it also raises interesting problems. For example today I rode from the second camp all the way out to Strawberry to collect a debt, catch a fugitive, and meet with Micah in that order. Debt collection went fine but on my way to get the bounty I spotted a perfect elk and decided to hunt it. After loading up the hide on my horse I realized oh crap, I can’t carry the bounty back now. Since getting perfect skins is such a rarity for me I decided to ride all the way back to camp to turn it in, cutting my trip short for another day. Foolish move I realized, I can’t just hunt big animals on a whim.

Also one big complaint I have: there are not enough places on the map you can shave. This game needs a shaving kit you can take with you or more shaving spots in towns so I don’t have stubble ruining my perfect mustache look every other day on the road.

 

[Ostrich]

Supposedly Arthur's honor level will determine his demeanor in dialogue at times, with him being more selfish and prone to anger if your honor is low. I'm curious as to how much that happens and may look up a comparison video. Like when we rustled some sheep and the auctioneer broke our balls a little to get a cut of the profits to keep his mouth shut, Arthur got pretty intense and looked ready to start a fight over it, but John of all people played it smart and calm and haggled the guy's price down a bit to resolve the situation peacefully. I wonder if that's just a normal plot point, to show Arthur's used to getting what he wants through the usual enforcer tactics he uses and that John is smarter and more level-headed than he's been getting credit for, or if my middling honor is what caused him to react that way. I haven't been worried at all about spoilers because I know most of the broad strokes for the story through cultural osmosis and the existence of RDR1.

Interesting. Early on, I most likely didn't realize these changes were happening, and just naturally played the game honorably. I enjoyed how you could slowly increase your honor just by riding through town and mashing the "Hey there mister!" button to obnoxiously greet everybody you pass by.

As you said, Marston definitely felt more level-headed than the other characters gave him credit for. Later on, it felt like Arthur evolved in the same way, with the attitude of "I don't want to do these things but have to cause I gotta help my family". It makes me want to go back through and do a dishonorable playthrough just to see if the plot feels different playing like a bad egg, but this is a big game. Maybe next year.

Also one big complaint I have: there are not enough places on the map you can shave. This game needs a shaving kit you can take with you or more shaving spots in towns so I don’t have stubble ruining my perfect mustache look every other day on the road.

This was a bit of an annoyance for me. I wish towns and settlements were more consistent in what they offered Arthur, such as item shops, barbershops, bath tubs, etc. I liked being able to give Arthur a good break and a warm bed to sleep in, but sometimes that didn't happen if the town (or entire chapter area) didn't have one. I guess going back to different areas could have helped, but I largely ignored fast travel too until late game. This might be a problem I created for myself.

 

[lincolnic]

I wonder if that's just a normal plot point, to show Arthur's used to getting what he wants through the usual enforcer tactics he uses and that John is smarter and more level-headed than he's been getting credit for, or if my middling honor is what caused him to react that way.

There are some cutscenes that play out differently depending on your honor level, but I don't think that's one of them.

 

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A *hum* pardon me y'all fine folks just lookin' to get by in this heah world but I need to make me a public statement:

I would like to sincerely and humbly apologize to one Lenny the Red Dead 2 Character for any unfortunate remarks I may have made about his gamblin' prowess. It may have occured to me that I might been a bit rash in determinin' him to be an easy mark after only one game. I assure you this is a 100% honest and forthright change of heart I done had*, and not a response to him horribly embarrassing me by mopping the table with Bill, John, and then me, most ruthlessly, in that order and walkin' away with all our money. No sir. I just realized the error of my judgemental ways is all. That'll be all, thank y'alls for hearin' me out and have a nice day.

*honor lost