Red Dead Redemption 2 - now available on PC

[CrunchyHemorrhoids]

I didn't feel the "survival" mechanics were detrimental, but rather a missed opportunity. I can understand why Rockstar, in the end, pussied out and scaled them back. If you go on any site where people criticize the game, one of the first complaints you'll see is the survival mechanics. Just the mere existence of them, even if it doesn't really matter gameplay wise, is enough to scare plenty of people away, because it's perceived as annoying busy work that gets in the way.
To me it also ended up being my main complaint about the game, but in the exact opposite way - I hated that I could ignore the system. I wanted a hardcore mode where you needed to eat every X hours and taking 3 shots would immediately kill Arthur. Surprisingly the PC version is still lacking such a mod sadly.

I also wish that the "survival" elements actually mattered, in an optional hardcore mode or otherwise. Not surprised to read about casual players complaining about having to engage those mechanics/elements even though they're inconsequential/entirely optional in practice as I find that the opening chapters of the game did a good job selling the illusion that those mechanics mattered/were needed, despite it being a one-size-fits-all difficulty AAA game.
The goal might have been for the more casual player/kids who don't enjoy that kind of stuff to quickly get annoyed and try skipping them so they'd quickly realize they don't need to engage with them and move on and play the game more gta-like, and also for the players who do enjoy those kinds of mechanics to simply keep engaging them naturally not realizing that they don't really matter. Even if the mechanics don't really have a significant effect on your likelihood of surviving, the game does offer other ways to validate your decision to keep engaging them: the way camp npcs complain and act when low on supplies, the way your gun's appearance changes when rusted, the way npcs react to you when you're an unwashed unkempt bum, the way your character moves when he's improperly dressed or needs rest etc. It's not as good as there being a real need for you to engage those mechanics -not as good as dictating your chances of survival- but it's not as bad as larping in a vacuum/TES game.

I'm at the St Denis chapter now and feel like the protag's near invulnerability and the excess of money are the bigger issues. Considering skipping deadeye mode/gamepad autoaim and not looting random npcs/containers if this keeps up, or on a new playthrough. Never had to use tonics.

The exploration/traversal is also too dependent on the minimap (worse than 3d markers you can use in games like the AC series) and long horse trips can quickly get tiresome (worse than autowalking/smart horse controls of BOTW/SOTC/modded TW3).

As for mods: https://www.nexusmods.com/reddeadredemption2/mods/125 Haven't tried it.

 

[DalekFlay]

You guys are pretty up your own asses with this "only kids and casuals don't like survival elements" shit. How many classic RPGs have actual survival elements? Practically zero. Stop being idiots.

Also it's not the "survival elements" that are the problem, it's that the game takes for fucking ever to do anything in, so any added activity is painful.

 

[Sentinel]

Where did that question about "classic RPGs" come from?

 

[DalekFlay]

Where did that question about "classic RPGs" come from?

It's pretty simple. The idea that "adult games" have survival elements is pretty contrary to the fact 95% of RPGs do not. I used RPGs as an example because... well, look at the address bar. Honestly though if you used "action games" as the example the percentage with survival elements would be even lower. The vast majority of the time survival elements are kept to games that specialize in that, and focus on it. So this idea that not wanting survival shit in the game is like "being a kid" makes you guys look pretty up your own ass, since if most people wanted that it would actually be in games most of the time. It's not.

For the 100th time though, it's not about the stupid core meters. It's such a useless mechanic it might as well not even be there. It's about how everything, even buying a can of beans, is a cumbersome and clunky mess to accomplish.

 

[Verylittlefishes]

So, is it worth 50 bucks? I want to test the new shaitan machine on something hi-end.

 

[Turuko]

Where did that question about "classic RPGs" come from?

It's pretty simple. The idea that "adult games" have survival elements is pretty contrary to the fact 95% of RPGs do not. I used RPGs as an example because... well, look at the address bar. Honestly though if you used "action games" as the example the percentage with survival elements would be even lower. The vast majority of the time survival elements are kept to games that specialize in that, and focus on it. So this idea that not wanting survival shit in the game is like "being a kid" makes you guys look pretty up your own ass, since if most people wanted that it would actually be in games most of the time. It's not.

For the 100th time though, it's not about the stupid core meters. It's such a useless mechanic it might as well not even be there. It's about how everything, even buying a can of beans, is a cumbersome and clunky mess to accomplish.

ironically enough, i'm trying the online and it's definitely snappier than the "story" mode

 

[Sentinel]

They reworked movement and animations for the online portion of the game. Think it was around the 1.06-1.09 patches.

In other news, the PC content is now available on PS4.

https://support.rockstargames.com/a...itle-Update-1-15-Notes-PS4-Xbox-One-PC-Stadia

New Content in Story Mode – PS4 Early Access

• The following Story Mode content is now available to all PlayStation 4 players:
  • Three new Bounty Hunter Missions
  • Two new Gang Hideouts
  • Two new Treasure Hunting Missions
  • Five new trinkets
  • Four new weapons
  • Seven new horse breed variations
  • Photo Mode
  • ‘To the Ends of the Earth’ Stranger Strand

Some other noteworthy improvements

Improvements – Story Mode

• Added new ‘Hold to Reel (Fishing)’ option within the Controls settings menu to improve accessibility for this minigame when using a controller. When activated, rotation of the control stick is replaced with a hold [Square / X] action

Gameplay Improvements

• Replaying a Story Mode mission via the Pause Menu will now give you access to all currently owned weapons in the current story progression
• Players in Story Mode can now fast travel away from their player camp to any unlocked Fast Travel location once the camp upgrade is purchased
• While playing Story Mode and engaged in combat against enemies, the time needed for your horse to get back up after being revived or injured from a fall has been reduced

 

[CrunchyHemorrhoids]

So, is it worth 50 bucks? I want to test the new shaitan machine on something hi-end.

You can get keys for less than 40. This and Disco Elysium are the most interesting games I've tried since TW3.

 

[RNGsus]

 

[rusty_shackleford]

 

[DalekFlay]

I uninstalled to play KotOR 2. Suck it cowboys!

 

[Assisted Living Godzilla]

Playing this more, and thinking about the Django Unchained Tarantino stuff in it, I wonder if at some point acting was involved in this as a mechanic. There's a few times in this where someone will have you play a role, or someone you're with will put on a character. This seems like something that could have been a mechanic in the game in conjunction with the simple (but more complicated than their other games) reply system being part of it, like a deeper version of how clothes work in San Andreas. When the old guy does his Mice and Men routine with you it almost feels like the introduction of a new mechanic...but it's not.

 

[Mebrilia the Viera Queen]

I uninstalled to play KotOR 2. Suck it cowboys!

Pfffft star wars... Dune is where the adult guys are.

 

[Sentinel]

 

[CuckMasher]

I didn't feel the "survival" mechanics were detrimental, but rather a missed opportunity. I can understand why Rockstar, in the end, pussied out and scaled them back. If you go on any site where people criticize the game, one of the first complaints you'll see is the survival mechanics. Just the mere existence of them, even if it doesn't really matter gameplay wise, is enough to scare plenty of people away, because it's perceived as annoying busy work that gets in the way.
To me it also ended up being my main complaint about the game, but in the exact opposite way - I hated that I could ignore the system. I wanted a hardcore mode where you needed to eat every X hours and taking 3 shots would immediately kill Arthur. Surprisingly the PC version is still lacking such a mod sadly.

I also wish that the "survival" elements actually mattered, in an optional hardcore mode or otherwise. Not surprised to read about casual players complaining about having to engage those mechanics/elements even though they're inconsequential/entirely optional in practice as I find that the opening chapters of the game did a good job selling the illusion that those mechanics mattered/were needed, despite it being a one-size-fits-all difficulty AAA game.
The goal might have been for the more casual player/kids who don't enjoy that kind of stuff to quickly get annoyed and try skipping them so they'd quickly realize they don't need to engage with them and move on and play the game more gta-like, and also for the players who do enjoy those kinds of mechanics to simply keep engaging them naturally not realizing that they don't really matter. Even if the mechanics don't really have a significant effect on your likelihood of surviving, the game does offer other ways to validate your decision to keep engaging them: the way camp npcs complain and act when low on supplies, the way your gun's appearance changes when rusted, the way npcs react to you when you're an unwashed unkempt bum, the way your character moves when he's improperly dressed or needs rest etc. It's not as good as there being a real need for you to engage those mechanics -not as good as dictating your chances of survival- but it's not as bad as larping in a vacuum/TES game.

I'm at the St Denis chapter now and feel like the protag's near invulnerability and the excess of money are the bigger issues. Considering skipping deadeye mode/gamepad autoaim and not looting random npcs/containers if this keeps up, or on a new playthrough. Never had to use tonics.

The exploration/traversal is also too dependent on the minimap (worse than 3d markers you can use in games like the AC series) and long horse trips can quickly get tiresome (worse than autowalking/smart horse controls of BOTW/SOTC/modded TW3).

As for mods: https://www.nexusmods.com/reddeadredemption2/mods/125 Haven't tried it.

This was my big issue with the game. They put in a ton of survival and moneymaking mechanics, but its all pointless from a gameplay perspective. So is exploration as far as I can tell. The game has you drowning in money from early on. Why hunt or rob a bank? They built this incredible open world with all these interesting mechanics, but its all sort of a dead end gameplay wise.

 

[Morkar Left]

This was my big issue with the game. They put in a ton of survival and moneymaking mechanics, but its all pointless from a gameplay perspective. So is exploration as far as I can tell. The game has you drowning in money from early on. Why hunt or rob a bank? They built this incredible open world with all these interesting mechanics, but its all sort of a dead end gameplay wise.

That's exactly the problem I have with these console or consolized games

 

[AwesomeButton]

I kind of expected this situation with superflous side activities, and I was hoping that the game coming to PC would open the possibilities for rebalancing mods to make these mechanics meaningful.

 

[DalekFlay]

This was my big issue with the game. They put in a ton of survival and moneymaking mechanics, but its all pointless from a gameplay perspective. So is exploration as far as I can tell. The game has you drowning in money from early on. Why hunt or rob a bank? They built this incredible open world with all these interesting mechanics, but its all sort of a dead end gameplay wise.

To be fair this has been a thing since GTA3. They want you to feel like you're in an open world and have tons of options, even though most of those options are pointless and all you do in the open world is go from marker to marker. I think in RDR2 it just stands out more because everything is laborious to accomplish.

 

[CuckMasher]

This was my big issue with the game. They put in a ton of survival and moneymaking mechanics, but its all pointless from a gameplay perspective. So is exploration as far as I can tell. The game has you drowning in money from early on. Why hunt or rob a bank? They built this incredible open world with all these interesting mechanics, but its all sort of a dead end gameplay wise.

To be fair this has been a thing since GTA3. They want you to feel like you're in an open world and have tons of options, even though most of those options are pointless and all you do in the open world is go from marker to marker. I think in RDR2 it just stands out more because everything is laborious to accomplish.

Thats a good point and probably why I bounced off gta5. Hopefully someone creates a survival or exploration total conversion.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Got this for Christmas and played a few hours of it so far, really enjoying it. Performance is extremely playable even on my dated hardware after tweaking things to medium/high settings (Except I went ultra on textures and low on some reflections and turning off motion blur because fuck motion blur). Only thing that I still don't feel comfortable with is the fucking horse controls. Feels like it wants me to tap or hold shift to match speed with people but the horse usually goes too fast, and then occasionally when I try to steer it the controls get reversed and it spins off in weird directions. Other than horses being the devil's ally just like with every Rockstar game the sound and visuals are fantastic, been having way too much fun just admiring the sights. Even played with the photo mode a little and that's some good shit. I don't doubt that I'll start to mirror the complaints about difficulty or lack of survival features fairly shortly (Since "Freezing winter cowboy version of the Long Dark" would be great) but at the same time I tend to really enjoy soaking up atmosphere in games and RDR2's looking fucking bananas for that. The little dialog blurbs with every random fucker you meet is cool too.

 

[cw8]

So, is it worth 50 bucks? I want to test the new shaitan machine on something hi-end.

I got it for the -20% discount. Paid close to full price cause of this:

 

[Verylittlefishes]

So, is it worth 50 bucks? I want to test the new shaitan machine on something hi-end.

I got it for the -20% discount. Paid close to full price cause of this:

Oh yeah, this is Rockstar game. Righttt.

 

[DalekFlay]

Got this for Christmas and played a few hours of it so far, really enjoying it. Performance is extremely playable even on my dated hardware after tweaking things to medium/high settings (Except I went ultra on textures and low on some reflections and turning off motion blur because fuck motion blur). Only thing that I still don't feel comfortable with is the fucking horse controls. Feels like it wants me to tap or hold shift to match speed with people but the horse usually goes too fast, and then occasionally when I try to steer it the controls get reversed and it spins off in weird directions. Other than horses being the devil's ally just like with every Rockstar game the sound and visuals are fantastic, been having way too much fun just admiring the sights. Even played with the photo mode a little and that's some good shit. I don't doubt that I'll start to mirror the complaints about difficulty or lack of survival features fairly shortly (Since "Freezing winter cowboy version of the Long Dark" would be great) but at the same time I tend to really enjoy soaking up atmosphere in games and RDR2's looking fucking bananas for that. The little dialog blurbs with every random fucker you meet is cool too.

If you match speed with another rider on your horse all you have to do is hold W. It might feel too fast sometimes if they take a corner and you don't or whatever, but it's not, and you'll ride beside them in the end. If you do anything other than W it resets I believe, and you have to hold Shift again to match speed. Yes it is cumbersome as fuck, as is the whole game.

 

[PorkyThePaladin]

RDR2 is the worst kind of game: so beautiful and realistic that it keeps holding you, but so brain-dead and dull gameplay-wise that you are miserable all the time you are playing it. It is truly the blond bimbo gf of a game.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Got this for Christmas and played a few hours of it so far, really enjoying it. Performance is extremely playable even on my dated hardware after tweaking things to medium/high settings (Except I went ultra on textures and low on some reflections and turning off motion blur because fuck motion blur). Only thing that I still don't feel comfortable with is the fucking horse controls. Feels like it wants me to tap or hold shift to match speed with people but the horse usually goes too fast, and then occasionally when I try to steer it the controls get reversed and it spins off in weird directions. Other than horses being the devil's ally just like with every Rockstar game the sound and visuals are fantastic, been having way too much fun just admiring the sights. Even played with the photo mode a little and that's some good shit. I don't doubt that I'll start to mirror the complaints about difficulty or lack of survival features fairly shortly (Since "Freezing winter cowboy version of the Long Dark" would be great) but at the same time I tend to really enjoy soaking up atmosphere in games and RDR2's looking fucking bananas for that. The little dialog blurbs with every random fucker you meet is cool too.

If you match speed with another rider on your horse all you have to do is hold W. It might feel too fast sometimes if they take a corner and you don't or whatever, but it's not, and you'll ride beside them in the end. If you do anything other than W it resets I believe, and you have to hold Shift again to match speed. Yes it is cumbersome as fuck, as is the whole game.

I thought I tried that in my random-ass fumbling with the horse controls, but maybe I didn't. I'll try again next time though, thanks!

Had some fun bullshit last night. Been planning on fattening my dude up since I'm trying to morph him into an evil Harry Dubois (And I need to find a clothing shop so I can dress him appropriately) but I keep seeing shit and then getting distracted. A bounty hunting mission turned into evading the law which turned into trying to get my horse back which turned in to tasteful rape which turned in to hunting, etc. It'd be nice if I could get his face beet red by drinking a lot too but I'm not sure that works. Might've fallen by the wayside for dynamic horse testicle warmth.