Current Events > 10 years ago today the first Red Dead Redemption was released. *SPOILERS*

(+) Yeah! (+)

I remember being super, super stoked when I first heard about Rockstar making it. I really liked Red Dead Revolver and wished for a western version of GTA and we got it.

I actually felt something when John dies. That's a gaming moment that sticks with you. It's made even better, or sadder, after playing RDR2.



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It really does make Arthur's sacrifice at the end all the more sad and ultimately fruitless. John never could escape the life Arthur gave his life for him to try and ended up with his son falling prey to it as well

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Honestly I didn't really feel much when John died. I don't think I really connected with him very much aside an amusing macho avatar to kill stuff with. What I really connected with was the landscape, the vibe of the world. There are locations that have really stuck with me, and certain views that, at the time, were pretty beautiful to see.

Arthur though... probably my favorite video game protagonist.

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You know it's funny, I loved this game and for years I regarded it as being one of my absolute favorite games of all time. Then RDR2 came out and completely outclassed it in every possible way. I played RDR1 immediately after beating RDR2 and so much of what I loved about it just wasn't impressive anymore. Even the writing really sucks in comparison. Maybe it's just a testament to how much I enjoyed RDR2.

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Funkydog posted...

It really does make Arthur's sacrifice at the end all the more sad and ultimately fruitless. John never could escape the life Arthur gave his life for him to try and ended up with his son falling prey to it as well

Yeah, but John had some good and happy years. That's worth something imo. Even though it ended bad, we all meet something of a bad end in a way.

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and it's sad to know that that tragic kinda life didn't end with John.

Jack was pulled into it because of Edgar Ross' treachery, and we don't know how he'll turn out, but it's most likely that he won't be having a happy ending.

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John's ending gets me even worse than Arthur's, depending on my mood. Really loved John in that one. Kinda annoyed they made him a drooling idiot in RDR2.

Jack's mission at the end of 1 is such a badass ending at least.

Pythagorass posted...

John's ending gets me even worse than Arthur's, depending on my mood. Really loved John in that one. Kinda annoyed they made him a drooling idiot in RDR2.

Jack's mission at the end of 1 is such a badass ending at least.

John is honestly pretty dumb in the first game. But in RDR2 he's surrounded by smarter people so it's a lot more noticeable.

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John still had few good years at least so it wasn't all in vain. It was going after Micah that sealed his fate, sadly.

I'd be cool with a Jack game (just make him less annoying) set in the 20s/30s. Instead of an outlaw cowboy, he's a down on his luck WW1 veteran and a depression era bank robber like John Dillinger or Pretty Boy Floyd who somehow gets embroiled in a Irish/Italian gang war. Have a bunch of little county towns with a big Chicago stand in. Think something along the lines of Boardwalk Empire. He'd be Jimmy or more so Richard essentially.

eston posted...

You know it's funny, I loved this game and for years I regarded it as being one of my absolute favorite games of all time. Then RDR2 came out and completely outclassed it in every possible way. I played RDR1 immediately after beating RDR2 and so much of what I loved about it just wasn't impressive anymore. Even the writing really sucks in comparison. Maybe it's just a testament to how much I enjoyed RDR2.

I tried replaying 1 and as much as I still love it in its own way, 2 did blow it away and I couldn't get into the RD1 groove again. I will watch clips of the story every now and again, it's no RDR2, but it's still pretty good.

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Might as well bump

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I'm in the middle of my first play through

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I felt so lucky to have been completely blind about this game up until like two weeks before it came out. If I had known about it longer that wait would've been agonizing...wasn't so lucky with GTA5 and RDR2 though.

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Jabodie posted...

John is honestly pretty dumb in the first game. But in RDR2 he's surrounded by smarter people so it's a lot more noticeable.

John is well-spoken bordering on eloquent in the first game. He's wise too

I'm not saying he's einstein but he's a flaming moron in 2 compared to what he was in 1

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man, *John spoilers in Red Dead Redemption 2* when he wrote the one letter to Abigail in the prologue, and when he proposed to her on the boat, it was beautiful

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John can't swim

I would end up buying two copies of that game. The first time I rage quit and snapped the disc in two.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpMThjgyck8
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Zack_Attackv1 posted...

I would end up buying two copies of that game. The first time I rage quit and snapped the disc in two.

lmfao

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boxington posted...

man, *John spoilers in Red Dead Redemption 2* when he wrote the one letter to Abigail in the prologue, and when he proposed to her on the boat, it was beautiful

That whole date he planned out leading up to the proposal was adorable

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I agree.

and *more Red Dead Redemption 2 spoilers* I don't think it's a case of John being less intelligent in the game, it's more that he's more angry and abrupt with people, even at the beginning of the prologue

when he realizes what's important to him, like his family, he works towards being more patient with people

that's how I see it, at least

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Eh. Until the epilogue he spends most of the game complaining about abigail and jack, fantasizing about leaving them, and even goes into drunken rants about how he wants to kill abigail and she means nothing to him. His turn to family man felt to me like it came out of nowhere and he was only doing it cuz he felt obligated. Kinda soured me on their relationship, even if the proposal mission was nice

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I loved Red Dead Redemption but I was really disappointed with RDR2, barely felt like a game

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Peeonidas posted...

Eh. Until the epilogue he spends most of the game complaining about abigail and jack, fantasizing about leaving them, and even goes into drunken rants about how he wants to kill abigail and she means nothing to him. His turn to family man felt to me like it came out of nowhere and he was only doing it cuz he felt obligated. Kinda soured me on their relationship, even if the proposal mission was nice

iirc, it was because Abigail had sex with almost all the guys in the gang, and John had some resentment about that, and didn't want to claim Jack as his own...then that one family abducted him and gave him to the mob boss, and John finally started to confront how he felt about Jack and Abigail, and acknowledged that he really did love them

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Ocron83 posted...

I loved Red Dead Redemption but I was really disappointed with RDR2, barely felt like a game

how so?

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boxington posted...

iirc, it was because Abigail had sex with almost all the guys in the gang, and John had some resentment about that, and didn't want to claim Jack as his own...then that one family abducted him and gave him to the mob boss, and John finally started to confront how he felt about Jack and Abigail, and acknowledged that he really did love them

I know that could be the reason per RDR1 but all John's complaints in 2 amount to "she nags me to do chores"

but still that's a good point box

boxington posted...

how so?

Every mission was so highly scripted that I didn't feel like I had any freedom as a player. It was too obvious and they sacrificed fun gameplay for making a cinematic experience

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thanks.

but tbf, outside of story missions, I didn't really pay attention to John, so idk if there might be some side stuff that might build on that stuff.

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Ocron83 posted...

Every mission was so highly scripted that I didn't feel like I had any freedom as a player. It was too obvious and they sacrificed fun gameplay for making a cinematic experience

R* missions have been highly scripted since GTAIV, same with RDR.

and there's a lot of content outside of missions, too.

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Also I just remembered that I met the guy who plays John at Planet Comic Con last year. Super nice guy. Also met the guy who plays Arthur and he was great too.

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Peeonidas posted...

John is well-spoken bordering on eloquent in the first game. He's wise too

I'm not saying he's einstein but he's a flaming moron in 2 compared to what he was in 1

Well spoken maybe but still dumb, threatening to kill everybody who pissed him off all the time.

If he was truly wise he wouldn't have worked for people who were obviously going to betray him in Mexico. Right now I legitimately can't think of a single wise thing he did in RDR. The first thing he does in Mexico is kill three random outlaws, for which he is (rightfully) chastised by Landon. Then he fights on both sides of a war he doesn't give a fuck about in hopes one of them will find Javier for him. His most important and likely only talent is shooting, as we can see he's a shit farmer and hardly an intellectual. Using a handful of big words he probably learned from Jack doesn't make him a smart man.

Of course, something should be said that in RDR1 John is constantly trying to be better than he is. He wants to be a good and wise man, and tries his hardest to be so for the sake of his family.

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