Red Dead Redemption - Review

While I never played Red Dead Revolver, I did put a lot of time into 2005s Gun from Activision, so when Red Dead Redemption released way back in 2010, I was itching for more western action. When the sequel came out in 2018, I thought it would be years before I could live that cowboy/desperado lifestyle once again, but then Rockstar surprised many with the news that Red Dead Redemption was coming to Switch and PlayStation 4. Given how much evolved between this game and the sequel, was diving back into the life of John Marston worth it, or like most westerns, was it a relic of a time long since gone?

The first thing that anyone ready to dive back in, needs to understand that this is a port, a well done port to be sure, but just a port. This is made evident within the games opening cutscenes when the name of the multiplayer lead is displayed on the screen, but this version of the game does not contain any multiplayer. While the port is very well done and I will get to that later in more detail, it being only a port means that there are not enhancements, the menu is the same, there are no quality of life improvements to be found here. While some might argue that it keeps things close to the original release, given that a studio took the time to make the game work on new hardware, adding an option to jump straight to the map or open your log, would have made sense.

If this is your first time riding into the series, then you are in for a treat and if not, then its still a treat. In the game you take up the reigns of John Marston, an outlaw who is attempting to leave the life behind, but as the past always has a way of catching up, it does here as well. John is forced by some government folks to track down a former gang member, Bill Williamson, in order to get his family and life back. While John does things in the simplest way possible, he literally rides right up to the hideout of Bill and gets shot for his trouble and left for dead. After being nursed back to health by a local rancher, John is pulled in to helping various folks around New Austin and in return they will help him catch Bill. From there, the story gallops all over the place, with hunting down equipment for missions, helping rescue folks and the occasional farm related assistance quest. The first dozen or so hours will see you riding around in the USA, then the next lot of time is spent south of the border, before returning north. Each location has a few towns to visit, homesteads to laze about and of course, plenty of riding to do.

The main bulk of the action has John riding around the world, completing many of the aforementioned tasks, but sometimes the world will just generate things for you to do. There is something quite fun about riding on a trail that seems to go nowhere, only to have someone run up begging for help. When you are not riding around the world scoping things out, you can head into town or a large ranch and undertake some leisurely activities, from poker to blackjack, liar dice or five finger fillet. Each activity has tutorials to explain them, so if you have never played them before the game does walk you through it and once you understand you can just go for it. Even if that didn’t appeal to you, there is still plenty else to do from bounty hunting to breaking horses and much more, so there is a lot to see and do in the world.

Speaking of the world, I feel I should address the performance of the Switch version, as that is the platform I played the game on and the simple fact is that it runs really well. Given the draw distance of the world, I expected a lot more pop-in that you would normally see in a game on the Switch, but for the most part it has no issues. There are times when textures or assets pop in closer to John, but those are not a common thing and sometimes they can pop in when you are not even looking, which also helps to hide them. There are some weird things with characters and your horse just doing odd motions, but I recall similar things happening in the original release as well. One of the more unique examples of this was when John got his face stuck in one awkward smile, it lasted for a few cutscenes as well and just made me smile when I saw it. There are some issues that do occur all the time, usually with the lighting model, the most common one is the train tracks, there is always a line that draws in the shadows just meters away from you. The other issue happens at night, lights inside houses and those places with street lighting will often see them pop in and not in a smooth way.

Undead Nightmare being included from the outset is great and means if you never had a chance to play this standalone story before, you can do so without needing to play the main game. Given that it’s a Majora’s Mask scenario to the main title, there is a feeling of Déjà vu here, more so if you just come right off the back of the main release, but its still great. The main world can be pretty spooky in some spots at night, but for the entire game to feel that way, just highlights how bang on Undead Nightmare got its mood. The same technical issues appear here as in the main game, but they still don’t detract from the overall experience.

If you have never played Red Dead Redemption or it has been a decade since you have, then picking up this port is certainly a good idea. While the port is fairly solid, with good looks and smooth animations, there are some random times when things don’t play out a smoothly as they should. The most annoying aspect is that there are no quality of life improvements here, the game still lets you swap the shoulder the camera sits behind, but no quick access to a map. Rockstar Games may not have been successful with their last classic re-release, but this time they struck gold.

The Score

8.5

Review code provided by Rockstar Games

The Pros

+Both the main game and Undead Nightmare, run very well and look great across the board

+Its impossible not to get suckered into the world that John Marston inhabits

The Cons

-The lack of any real quality of life improvements is a letdown

-There are times when the game has issues loading in assets or lighting elements, hurting the immersion