Red Dead Frickin’ Awesome

I don’t want to steal the thunder from future contributor and good buddy George Collazo’s upcoming piece, but since I just finished Red Dead Redemption, I feel I have to make a quick comment about the game everyone had been playing the last couple months.

So many games over the years, in terms of narrative, have blown it in the dismount (I’m looking at you in particular, Bioshock) that it is a small wonder people put in the effort to finish them. Most don’t, in fact, if some studies are to be believed. I can only think of a handful of recent games with a satisfying ending off the top of my head (Uncharted 2, Assassin’s Creed 2, GTA4). I can think of only one that truly blew me away (Mass Effect 2).

That said, Red Dead Redemption has an ending that is truly one of the best I have experienced in videogames. It was surprising, satisfying, emotional and hit all the beats a great western movie would have hit, but in ways a movie would never be able to.