One of the most peak games I've ever played. Story is more unconcise and meander-y compared the first Red Dead, but still very grounded and periodically accurate. Roger Clark's performance as Arthur Morgan is one of the best I've seen in gaming, on par with Rob Wiethoff's performance as John Marston in the first Red Dead, and this entry. Gameplay is great and engaging, new improvements to Deadeye and hunting are well-welcomed additions to freemode.

Speaking of freemode, new Legendary Animals join the world to hunt freely, not connected to ambient challenges like the first Red Dead, and new crafting recipes like different ammo types and tonics.

But, its not a Rockstar game without a paragraph of criticism. First, to add about the bloated story. I liked how they addressed what happened to John before he left the Van Der Linde Gang, its how I imagined it went. The missions... just sometimes go on and on and on. The horse rides to objectives at the beginning of missions are great for exposition, but the gameplay sucks during it, which is essentially holding A down on a path. They could've found a way to trim the fat of the transitional gameplay, just saying. Oh Red Dead Online... how I feel so sorry for RDO. Just take a look at all the support it got compared to the updates that GTA Online got, it's obvious where R*'s priorities lie.

Still, one of the best sandbox games out there. Outlaws For Life.