Red Dead Redemption

[The reader is warned that the following piece makes plot points, particularly the ending, explicit. Don’t read if you wish the avoid spoilers.]

The ‘western’ landscape is a melancholic one. That’s the lingering impression of Rockstar Games’ latest foray in the genre: Red Dead Redemption. As Ashtar Command’s moving track “Dead Man’s Gun” partners the credits one realises they have been taken on an emotional journey; one that only digs deeper the further you progress, that ditches the usual explosiveness of the final missions of Grand Theft Auto IV and San Andreas for one of poignant resonance. Rockstar Games have always been ‘bold’ with their products. But this is a different kind of daring than that exhibited in their biting satire and audacious courting of controversy; this is a daring located in the very process of storytelling. They reveal that beneath the lewd humour, colourful characters and ludicrous situations – all still present – lies the capacity to convey an affecting narrative.

Grand Theft Auto IV indicated that Rockstar Games had a maturity in storytelling, producing the closest thing to a ‘character study’ yet in their body-of-work. Red Dead Redemption offers a worthy, at times superior, continuation. The main narrative is familiar territory for fans of Grand Theft Auto: an ex-criminal attempting to escape from the past only to be drawn back into it involuntarily, inescapably. Obvious from the game’s title is the theme of redemption; what’s not immediately apparent is how that theme actually transplants itself to be felt by the gamer. Like Niko Bellic in Grand Theft Auto IV, Marsten must hunt down figures from his past. Along the way a host of characters manipulate and use Marsten, dangling that carrot in front of him to get what they want without returning the favour. One particular mission struck me; in Mexico, Marsten is enlisted to help quell a rebellion by the government with the promise of aid in his quest resultantly. After completing this mission, having killed all the peasants and burnt their houses (manually), a cut-scene portrays several Mexican soldiers taking away the now widowed wives. Their fate that you, the gamer, cemented is one of rape and probably murder. The sense of outrage at this image rocked me; I hoped against everything that I’d have a chance to make up for this. In a way Red Dead Redemption provoked within me the longing for redemption, crafting empathy for the John Marsten character rarely achieved, for me, in a video game.



This same interactivity that shifts the gamer’s sensibility is repeated in Red Dead Redemption’s conclusion. Without hyperbole, it’s the most evocative stretch of gameplay I’ve encountered. What seemed mere novel distractions during the course of the game (horse-breaking, herding cattle, hunting etc.) transform into powerful storytelling devices once Marsten has fulfilled his enforced obligation in bringing his former gang cronies to justice. With wife and son released safely, the Marsten family return to their ranch. You get to take part in rebuilding the property, the missions concurrently focusing on John forging a bond with his son. This is what you were fighting for throughout the game, to reunite John with his family, and you get to take active part in it. Teaching the son how to hunt and herd cattle; it’s a lovely set of missions. But it’s also unsettling. This can’t be the end of the game; it’s too anti-climatic. It’s not the end of the game and, soon enough, those same government agents that blackmailed Marsten reappear. Storming the Marsten ranch with a ridiculous amount of soldiers, the inevitable fate is overbearing. The tragic ending - I won’t say in what way it’s ‘tragic’ – is becoming of the genre, recalling similar themes in Eastwood’s masterpiece Unforgiven and McCarthy’s equally bleak neo-Western No Country for Old Men. And therein lies Rockstar Games’ ‘boldness’, forgoing the ‘happy ending’ for an end result that’s both moving and faithful to the greatest interpretations of the genre.

The sheer beauty of Red Dead Redemption’s world cannot be left unsaid. Rockstar Games have an impeccable gift in crafting areas rich with character and variation. Grand Theft Auto IV achieved this impression with the cityscape; not a building design seemed copied-and-pasted, each region had a distinct ‘look’ which subsequently fragmented into several recognisable areas or districts. Their attention to detail is amazing and seemingly ushers in a Joycean view wherein certain locations, from mundane street corners to parks and factories, acquire meaning / significance through experiences had in-game. Driving down most streets yield some sort of memory that enhances the distinctiveness of each area. This leaves the empty, mere functionalist design of GTA clones a la Saints Row rather lacklustre in comparison; it’s simply impossible for that same phenomenon to occur in a game where every building, every street, looked the same.



Red Dead Redemption achieves this same effect, despite having less ‘landmarks’ to work with. Unlike Neversoft / Activison’s GUN, which felt unforgivably small in scope and void of life, Red Dead Redemption is expansive and brimming with inhabitants. Randomly generated events appear as you ride around, sustaining contact with humanity in what could’ve been a very lonely existence. Moreover the game offers a fully-fledged ecosystem that dominates the unsettled countryside. The excessive amount of species is astonishing – ranging from rabbits, raccoons and armadillos to bears, cougars and buffalo. Predators hunt smaller prey. Vultures gravitate towards corpses. Coyotes and wolves hunt in packs; cougars and bobcats go it solo. The dedication to research, especially exemplified in their realistic movements, is admirable and allows for a vibrant virtual world. Contributing to this is the variation in appearance each region contains. West Elizabeth has rolling plains, dense woodlands, snow-capped peaks and cobblestone streets; New Austin the standard cactus-riddled desert; Mexico is flatter, redder and dotted with smoother rock formations. With what may have felt a limited design scheme initially, Rockstar Games prove they are just as adept at constructing an interesting countryside as they are cityscapes.