Am I missing something with Red Dead Redemption 2?

I really don't want to like...bash on something that a lot of people like, but I'm pretty early on in RDR2 and it's kind of not landing for me.

Everything just feels a little bit too...slow and clunky for me, I guess? It's little things like the really slow base walk speed, a lot of segments where you're just taking a while to travel somewhere on horse or carriage and listening to dialogue play out, and carriage driving in particular boiling down to just holding down a button for a few minutes at a time (which...I'll be honest, is a pet peeve of mine a bit, controllers are expensive as hell these days and those buttons do wear out eventually).

A small part of me is already just sort of wondering if the game is for me at all. I tried messing with the controls a bit (on the PS4 version, albeit being played on a PS5) and I couldn't find a setup that felt like it made things too much smoother, and a lot of what's bugging me feels a bit more ingrained into the gameplay, IE, the numerous riding segments already.

Does the game shift at all as it goes? I haven't gotten into the open world too much just yet (I basically just started into it, where I...immediately got into another mission that starts by forcing a carriage drive.), so I feel bad for having thoughts of dropping it as the actual game is just starting up, but if a lot of the missions are like what I mentioned, I think I'd have a bit of trouble sticking with it long term, and I believe the game is pretty long overall.

Sorry if this came across as overly harsh. I don't want to be like "Popular thing bad" at all, but I've had a bit of trouble getting into it thus far.

No, you're not missing anything. The actual gameplay in RDR2 being bad is a pretty common opinion.

Yeah. Amazingly made game, but they went just a little past that line that divides realism and fun.

i really, REALLY hope they dont follow that formula for GTA6

Red dead redemption 2 is always going to have those sluggish "realism" controls and so sadly this is just going to have to be dealt with for the rest of the game.

*Funny enough the online component red dead online actually did get a animation speed buff after a certain update, lol. If you play red dead online these days and then go back to single player the difference is going to be jarring.*

What made red dead redemption 2 a hit for a lot of people (and myself) was the immersion aspect. Its basically a cowboy sim and living out that cowboy life because of the little details they added to the world. (Those little things like brushing your horse, cleaning up around the camp, hunting, standing around and watching people go about their life, bounty hunting and so on so on). The story when it got going was non-stop good (chapter 2 is a little slow on this front, but it kicks off during the mid part of chapter 3. If you aren't into the story by chapter 3's climax then the game isn't going to be for you). The music is amazing. Likeable gang members and so I wanted to finish the story just to see whats going to happen with all these assholes but fuck micah.

But yeah controls is traditional rockstar sluggish and I really wish how red dead online feels is the standard across their modern games.

Nah it sounds like its just not for you. I love the game and find the experience almost unmatched but anyone saying they just find it boring I understand.

I loved that personally. The slow, gritty realistic animations and the travelling really pulls me in. It's like a living word. Probably one of the best open world games I've ever played.

Give it a little more time, tc. It really picks up.

It is an excellent game.

If it's not for you, it's not for you. Why try and force it?

BiggCoolDaddy posted...

It is an excellent game.

That doesn't mean it's for everybody though.

From what everyone is saying, it feels like my assessment isn't...wrong, per se, but people still generally like the game.

My initial thought based on these responses is to give it a bit more time and see how the story hooks me and if I can adjust to things a little bit. If it doesn't grab me after a bit (someone mentioned chapter 3 as a good point to determine that), I should probably just reluctantly drop it. I do want to at least give it a fair chance, because I liked the first game a lot, but yeah, if the gameplay just doesn't quite click with me by then, then I should probably just try something else, I think.

Its been a few years since Ive played it but damn I loved that game.

What makes it so memorable is also what turns so many people off unfortunately.

Id recommend playing some more until you open up the map some more and if that doesnt pull you in, it might not be your bag.

Its just a whole bunch of slightly better than average cutscenes and horse riding occasionally interrupted by a shooting gallery mini game where all you to is tap L1 and R1 to win.

Rockstar have never made a game that had fun shooting, but they keep making games in genres that have a lot of shooting.

I just think they put all the effort into the cutscenes and the graphics and forgot about everything else that made it a video game. There's so much they could have done with the genre, but they streamlined everything so much that it just doesn't feel like a video game anymore, just something that could have been on a tablet.

The actual gameplay does not get any better. Whether you decide to push through it or not depends on if youre liking the story and characters. There are some cool side missions and stuff to do in the open world but I dont think youll suddenly end up liking how the game plays. I think its a great game but its not for everyone.

No, it doesn't pick up in the way you're hoping for. Certainly the stakes get higher, the story starts to escalate, the action gets heavier. But the same slow riding scenes while listening to someone's weird tarantino-style anecdote is always there. The slow mechanical movements of actually physically picking stuff up is always there.

It's a game best taken slowly. Don't play it to rush through a list of quests. Just try to relax and immerse.