"I left the gang after the gang left me"

Red Dead Redemption is a Western epic following the scarred life of John Marston. After a life of crime all John wants to do is sit back and enjoy family life on his farm. But, the past catches up with John and the government rope him back in to catch his former bandit crew. The story is set in the most southern point of North America and the northern most point of Mexico in 1911, also known as the Western Frontier aka the Wild West. Rockstar Games let you follow the life of John Marston as his old life continues to haunt him, but it truly is a representation of what an epic should be!! This ladies and gents... is the Godfather Trilogy of gaming, documenting years and years of life in hours and actually managing to do it justice.

After an explosive beginning, where John is shot and left for dead by his bandit friends. You are nursed back to health by a young woman, who turns out to be a farmer. This then becomes something of a game changer. Someone I know gave up at this point because you learn to ride a horse and how to shoot... but you also learn how to rear cattle and horses. This can be seen as a slightly boring start. But bear with it, as it soon becomes a perfect start to the adventure, slowly sinking you in to the feel of riding a horse. This is definitely one of my favourite moments in the game, as the lack of pure action lets you enjoy the scenery and get to know the land quite well, which is definitely helpful!! 

Seriously, LOOK!

Mid-bounty

After being introduced to the nearest town, Armadillo, the world is open for you. If you choose to, you can go off and explore the vast desert. Or you can have too many to drink at the local saloon...maybe go off and find a hunter out into the lands and challenge him. Perhaps you fancy taking a bounty from the local sheriff? Well this then brings another of my favourite moments in the game. Anytime you take a bounty, you are given directions to the area, then you have to find them yourself! You then scout the situation, including headcount and how to approach. Once the bounty's gang are dead, the bounty is all yours, shoot him in the leg then tie him up...stick him on your horse and ride back to the nearest sheriff station. In writing, this kind of seems boring... but seriously, it is pretty thrilling as you ride towards the town with the bounty on horseback as more of his gang show up to kill you. The game is much more than the numerous side quests, ingredient picking, hunting etc. But I will take the next few paragraphs to concentrate on the highlights of the main story...so like before... SPOILERS BITCHEZ.

Scenery=beautiful. John=...

After a good portion of GTA-style errand missions. Marston manages to collaborate with several of the West's most colourful characters. You almost make a posse of your own to join together to attack Fort Mercer, the stronghold of Marstons ex partner Bill Williamson. After a Trojan Horse moment, you emerge from a carriage with a hand operated machine gun, mowing down Williamsons gang as they try and find cover from the onslaught. The hours of preparation for this moment is so worth it!! The feeling you get from taking down each member of the rival gang knowing you will at some point get to take out Williamson is a true 'WHEEEEEEWW" moment. Instead of some crazy long detailed explanation of the sequence, here it is for your viewing pleasure!

The next standout moment for me is the crossover into Mexico. For a fair few hours you are restricted (not really!!) to the American deserts. But, the crossover into Mexico is an epic moment. As Jose Gonzalez-Far Away plays out, you sail slowly down the river as enemy hunt you from the banks. Once you reach the Mexican shore, you and your guide grab the nearest horse and fight your way through the enemies to the nearest town, following a train all the way into the station. The fact that Rockstar make such a huge deal of a moment that simply open up more of the map is a testament to how big and ace this game is. Another thing that stands out is the difference in atmosphere in Mexico. No longer are the Americans respecting you after hours of building reputation, they hate you...everyone hates you. The current civil war in Mexico is taking place and (as expected) you have the chance to fight for both sides...but they still hate you. Its a great interpretation of the West ideologically... as most people of working for the American dream, but most have no idea what it is or how to get there... so they take any chance they get to be ahead of the game. Here is just a few of the friendly faces you will see.

<<<  A handful of main characters





















Some of the bandits hunting your ass >>>>

Jack Marston!

Now, throughout fighting in the Mexican Civil War you meet a host of revolutionaries and political leaders that pretty much use you to their advantage. But you must return to the Frontier after you eventually capture Bill Williamson. He tells you, in his dying moments, that the man you have truly been searching for.. Dutch .. is holed up in the northernmost point of the map. You finally make it to the town of Blackwater, a growing city full of the rich, including the government that is blackmailing you into doing their bidding. John is clearly affected by this, but for his family and peace he is willing to do anything. And so, you assault Dutch's hideout. All out war occurs as the law get involved and a huge shootout starts between the corrupt thieves and... the corrupt lawmen. You finally catch Dutch, shoot him, and  finally ride back to your ranch where your family are staying. Once again, music plays... as your ride closer to home and back to the life you have wanted for years. The game then turns into the life of John Marston, training his son in the ways of the land...hunting farming and everything in between. Johns wife is also there, clearly showing her dominance over her husband but in a loving way! Then comes some of the most harrowing events in any game... and unfortunately it doesn't end well. SPOILERS !!!

A true man saves his family...

On a normal day, John wakes up and is halfway through his duties. He looks up and hears the sound of men heading his way. Arming himself, he see's that the government has turned on him. The years of helping and aiding their cause meaning nothing. They said they wanted his gang, which also includes him. With his son and Uncle armed too, they defend the ranch with their lives. You shoot several armed lawmen, knowing that there is no way back. The ammo depletes quickly as the laws forces increase, you have no choice but to run. John grabs his wife and son as his uncle is shot down. He leads them into the barn, grabs a horse and puts them both on it. He begs them to run, they plead no. But John knows, he knows that this is how it ends. He walks out into his yard, with several armed soldiers pointing their rifles, repeaters and revolvers straight at our hero. John knows that he hasn't got enough bullets to kill them all, but he tries anyway. The player is given six shots before the forces unload their clips into your body. The life of John Marston comes to an end, after working for years trying to claw himself back into a normal life. No other game lets you get so used to the honest character of the hero, only to end it in a way that you couldn't imagine. You spend the game killing hundreds, only to be killed by a handful of nameless soldiers doing their duty.

RIP

At that point however, what seems to be the end isn't. Rockstar manages to make you go, THIS IS ACE, even at the end of the adventure. As a storm rages at the Marston farm, the camera zooms out to reveal the graves of both Mr and Mrs Marston, with lil annoying Jack standing over them. But now Jack is a grown man and ready for revenge on the very people who split his family apart. Here is Jack, see any comparison.

Johnny Depp influence much?!

Jack then hunts down the handful of people who betrayed his father....leaving you the choice to kill them if you sit fit. You finally find the man who was the reason for the betrayal, Edgar Ross. He was the man who took Johns family away, so you repay the favour. Finding him fishing in the river, you approach him and he accepts his fate. Shoot or not? What would you do? (This video shows a player killing Edgar Ross's family before killing him in the closing moments).

At this point, you sit back and feel an immense sense of completing a journey. You learn John Marsden so well that you know how he will react to most situations. The fact that you die at the end adds a sense of realism, only for Rockstar to undermine themselves in the best way possible!!!

If you see this ANYWHERE. RUN.

Bad Day right?

Yet another bad situation.

My final amazing moment of the game, is the downloadable content pack known as Undead Nightmare. This add-on brings zombies into the West. The story is unnecessary, but fun if you want to follow it. You visit several of your old friends throughout the 10 hour add-on, but the most fun part comes in the zombie killing. These zombies range from runners to shamblers... and they DO NOT DIE WITHOUT A HEADSHOT. Trust me, it is so difficult to kill these things that you will go out of your way not to face them. A pack like the one above is terrifying when you are horseless and wandering around the deserts and woodlands... oh and yeah.... there are zombie wolves and bears and horses. The pack is so well made that you can spend much more than the designated hours on this, wandering the land picking off zombies... maybe you want to help the civilians defend the handful of settlements around the area... or perhaps you want to discover Bigfoot in the woods or rear the four horses of the apocalypse? Its all here, and is definitely the cherry on top of a MINT package.

Yep, zombie horses.

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