Red Dead Redemption 2 (PC) review: One of the best stories in gaming comes to PC

Online mode, story and verdict

Hi ho Silver, awaaaay!

It’s hard to not make Westworld references when talking about Red Dead Redemption 2’s online mode, because that’s exactly what it is: you and your friends, pretending to be cowboys. I’m not a huge fan of this game’s online mode, but even at its very worst, it’s just more of a good thing. 

Red Dead Online begins with some basic character customisation - whatever you make will always look like Frankenstein’s other monster, so dress it up in some cool cowboy duds when you’re able. You can play through a handful of story missions and quests, with more being added to the game all the time. You’ll see some familiar faces from the first Red Dead Redemption, which is definitely nice. 

You can also participate in several of the game’s many multiplayer modes, including deathmatches and horse racing. There’s plenty to do in Red Dead Online, that’s for sure. If you ask me, the best way to experience Online is right after the main story - when you’re not quite ready to hang up that cowboy hat.

Arthur Morgan and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day

The story and writing of Red Dead Redemption 2 is undeniably its greatest strength. You play as Arthur Morgan, Dutch Van Der Linde’s right hand man in his gang of outlaws. The gang has just come off a robbery in Blackwater gone horribly wrong - leaving numerous deaths in their wake and a large bounty on their heads. 

In the beginning, you might be more than a little overwhelmed by just how many characters are introduced to you at once - the Van Der Linde gang isn’t a small one after all, and its members come from diverse backgrounds and walks of life. Fortunately, some really great writing will make you warm up to all these characters pretty quickly. You’ll walk out of this remembering each and every one of their names, and the time you spent together, as short-lived as it can sometimes be. 

The story’s not perfect - it can drag on at times, particularly in one lengthy segment that I won’t spoil. Missions can get pretty repetitive - with most of them devolving into shootout after shootout. Rockstar also has a tedious habit of making you play missions their way.

For example, during a one-on-one duel, I tried to shoot a gun out of someone’s hands - something you can very much do to every other enemy. I didn’t want to kill him, but take him alive for a bounty instead. Unfortunately, the game had decided for me that this man would die here and now, and shooting his hand led to his immediate death. 

It might sound like I’m being a little picky - but you’ll realise quickly that the freedom this game gives you in its open world does not extend to its story missions, and that’s a real shame. It’s a glaring flaw in Rockstar’s game design, and really takes away from the game’s replayability. Missions are always played the same way, and any creativity is punished. 

Verdict

Red Dead Redemption 2 has some flaws. Its PC port was borderline unplayable for a week, and not all of its issues have been fixed just yet. However, the sheer beauty of its touched up graphics and lighting system definitely puts this port a step up over the game’s console versions. Rockstar’s mission structure also feels a little rusty, especially considering how masterfully this game is put together in almost every other regard. 

Fortunately, the writing and overarching story on display here still ties the game together beautifully. This is a game about endings, putting you in the shoes of a desperate group of outlaws quickly losing their place in the world. When confronted by the end of all things, Arthur and Dutch both find themselves becoming very different people than who they used to be. 

“We’re thieves, in a world that don’t want us no more,” Arthur says tightly - and he has no idea just how right he is.