by Craig Buck

Created on: June 01, 2010   Last Updated: June 25, 2010

Rockstar's new adventure takes us back to the Wild West and is the sequal to Red Dead Revolver which was released in 2004. Playing as John Marston, your ulitimate aim is to kill your old buddy, Bill Williamson.  This is not as simple as it sounds however.  Along the way, you will need to do missions which will enable other characters to trust you and give you vital information as you piece together your jigsaw as you work out the best way to take out Williamson.

Those who are used to the GTA series will be able to pick up this game and playing within seconds as the shooting controls are identical.  Horse movements are accomplished by pressing the A button, but excessive use of this will force the horse to bolt and throw you off the back.  The game uses something called 'Dead Eye' which slows the action down so that you are able to take a more accurate shot at an enemy. Be careful though as you only have limited time to use Dead Eye before the power meter runs out so use it wisely. The map is vast but fortunately, as with GTA, you are able to set waypoints which make it easier to find your way from town to town. You can also set camp fires which are a fast way to transport to previously visited locations without the need to actually travel there. In free mode, you can decide whether you want to have a good image or a bad image.  If you want to play rough then you can go around shooting everyone in sight which will put a bounty on your head and make people less likely to help you.  If you want to play it clean however, people will start to respect you which will mean you are likely to get bigger discounts in the stores and law enforcement agencies are more likely to turn a blind eye to any dodgy activities.  As you would expect with a Rockstar game, there are plenty of side games to keep you occupied if you want a break from the main storyline.  You can try your hand at games such as poker or even work as an overnight security guard to ensure the town is safe.

Online play in this game is excellent, much better than GTA and very close to Modern Warfare 2.  Initially you start off in a free roam with upto 15 other players which is a great way to practice and hone your skills. At various locations on the map, there are opporunities to play the more traditional deathmatch and flag games (bags are used instead of flags in Read Dead Redeption). You are able to level up by playing these online games and the more XP (Experience Points) you get, the better weapons and characters become available to you.

Red Dead Redemption is an excellent game and will be enjoyed by GTA fans and new players alike.

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