After years of secrecy and delays, it feels real now. Red Dead Redemption 2‘s release date of October 26th seems like it’s locked-in, and we’re going to be playing a game eight years in the making with the full force of Rockstar’s juggernaut studio. From what we’ve learned about the game, Rockstar is matching the detailed visuals with equally ambitious AI and mission structure, creating a unique experience unlike anything ever played before.
But back to those visuals.
The game is sure to look spectacular in 4K on the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X, but Rockstar is known for pushing the limits of what’s possible on current-gen hardware, and if these screenshots are any indication, we’ll be seeing the full power of our systems on display. Look at the beauty, look at the level of detail in these newly-released screenshots:
Yes, that’s Red Dead Redemption‘s John Marston in the screen above, and there’s Dutch and the Van der Linde gang in the images below. It feels like a living, breathing recreation of The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Every still frame looks like it could be a still from a film, or a painting. Hopefully, Rockstar adds a photo mode to the game.
The day/night cycles and dynamic weather effects look truly incredible. It’s something we’ve seen in countless games before, so it will be interesting to find out if Rockstar has anything up their sleeve when it comes to innovating there. Judging purely on aesthetics, the game looks really, really great. Look at the moon rays cutting through the trees. Each screen looks like it embodies the writing of Eli Cash:
The crickets and the rust-beetles scuttled among the nettles of the sage thicket. “Vámonos, amigos,” he whispered, and threw the busted leather flintcraw over the loose weave of the saddlecock. And they rode on in the friscalating dusklight.
And notice how the house behind John and the other gang member is getting shot up? This environment can be changed. You can have an impact on this beautiful world and the real-time destruction looks second-to-none. You can see the bench being blown apart piece by piece behind them. And will you have to hold onto your second weapon, Max Payne style, if you want to carry multiple guns?