Leave it to Rockstar to create a game where you have to kill to atone for your prior sins.  You can even gain honor and fame in the process.

Many games lack convincing narrative, and many more lack narrative altogether.  Red Dead Redemption certainly excites the player through the take on life by James Marston.  Dialogue during missions, rides, and general game play does not leave much to be desired.  Marston’s resilient yet cynical outlook on life, post crime-phase, intrigues the player to at times pay attention to what’s being said more than the guy shooting you in the face with a wicked revolver.

The actual mechanics of riding, ground movement, and firing your pistola (or sawed-off shotgun if you prefer to get real close), are fluid and meaningful.  Because this is a Rockstar game, you experience a “dead eye” version of bullet-time in which you can lock-on to an appendage or eyeball and quickly fire up to five shots in a split second depending on the weapon.  Also, during the hectic encounter when you are hopelessly outnumbered, you can actually hide behind a barrel or a wagon and not look like an idiot when doing so.  Remnants of Gears of War pop in my mind, but you don’t lumber as much.

The real fun starts when you have your first “Ah-ha!” moment during combat.  For example, I tried my hand at Metal Gear Solid-”ing” one mission where there was a shootout in an abandoned mansion.  I knew the npc on the other side of the door was reloading, so I used this advantage to give him a shotgun facial.  What I did not expect was a quick cut scene of me grabbing his vest, pulling him in closer, and blowing his cabeza off his shoulders.  Immediately I began thinking of what it will look like when I go in next time with a different weapon…like a knife.

For being roughly half way through this game, I am entranced by it’s dialogue and invigorated by its playability.  Now if only I didn’t have anymore Bonnie the Farmhand missions.  She’s hot, but her mission’s ain’t.