In Red Dead 2, people exist. They have work to do and schedules to stick to, regardless of whether you’re there to see it or not. But if you are there, they’ll react accordingly - so point a revolver at the guy innocently sweeping his porch and, depending on his demeanour, he could drop to his knees and beg for his life, or at the opposite end of the scale draw a six-shooter and retaliate. There’s deep-rooted connection between you, your actions and the surrounding world, which is critical to everything that Red Dead Redemption 2 is. Rockstar doesn’t just want you to play as outlaw and protagonist Arthur Morgan, it wants you to live as him.
Morgan is one of the senior members of Van der Linde gang, a band of outcasts led by Dutch van de Linde. The year is 1899 and the Wild West is being tamed, with outlaws driven into hiding as the authorities grow in size and strength. When a robbery in the town of Blackwater goes wrong, Morgan and the Van der Linde gang are forced to run, chased by gangs of bounty hunters led by the law.
For the purposes of the 45-minute demo on show, we join Morgan on the outskirts of Dutch’s camp. The makeshift base, comprised of wagons and tents, is the foundation on which the gang is built, a place where Dutch, Arthur and the other desperados can relax, reflect on the day’s events and plan for the next.
The camp is a living community. Hidden from prying eyes by thick brush and towering trees, it’s the people that bring it to life and as such it’s constantly changing. Here, it’s early morning and the sun is slowly rising over the plains. It’s a view we take a moment to soak up – it’s a fresh spring morning and the wilderness is washed in a pale yellow glow. Sparks of white sunlight flicker off the river below, which snakes from right to left, dividing the landscape in two. Huge pine trees dominate the foreground and they’re more of a lush, alpine feel compared to what we saw for the majority of Red Dead Redemption. In the distance a thin wisp of smoke drifts lazily into the sky, while the horizon is framed by snow-capped mountains.
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Red Dead 2 is a strikingly beautiful game. We’re only seconds into the demo and it’s immediately apparent every inch of this world and everything in it has been painstakingly crafted and every detail pored over. The opening close-up of Arthur depicts an outlaw who’s wise yet kind, his blue-green eyes and stubbled square jaw painting the impression of a man you don’t want to mess with, but he’d probably be great to share a pint with.
Arthur is standing on the edge of camp, looking out over the wilderness. It’s eerily quiet, as if the world hasn’t quite woken up yet. Turning, Arthur walks towards camp, pausing to pull a cup from his satchel and fill it with coffee, and it’s here we get our first proper look at some of the other gang members. Sean McGuire is a cheery Irish joker who’s telling stories around the campfire with boundless enthusiasm; Uncle is a bearded, hungover wreck, slumped against a barrel dressed only in his underwear, and mutters something as you walk past. There are others, deep in conversation or otherwise going about their daily business.
This is a working camp, so everything has to… well, work. Clothes have to be cleaned, wood is needed for the fire, water must to be collected from the river, and so on. Each member of the gang has a role to play and their own duties to fulfill, and if you take a minute to look around you’ll begin to notice how everything works as it should and everyone has their place.
As Dutch’s right-hand man, Arthur plays an important role in the upkeep of the gang, not just in terms of supplies but also the morale of the gang. If food and resources are aplenty then spirits will be high, which is reflected in the mood of the camp. People will be singing and dancing, and you’ll be greeted with cheer. But if the food supply runs low, you’ll quickly know about it – people will mutter angrily about where the next meal is coming from. As a senior member of the gang, many will look to Arthur to provide, through hunting or buying supplies, and he’ll be rewarded for doing so. But thankfully the responsibility doesn’t fall entirely on your shoulders – Rockstar is keen to emphasise the camp will continue regardless of your input and is spending a lot of time balancing Arthur’s responsibilities with having fun.
Pearson is the camp cook and when Arthur walks past he’s told the meat supply is running low. Importantly, this isn’t a cutscene that triggers a mission, it plays out as Morgan is walking along, still sipping his coffee. That’s the case with almost every interaction we saw throughout the demo – the camera doesn’t cut away, instead keeping you at the heart of the action, with interactions triggered through a combination of proximity or Arthur choosing to continue the conversation. As a result it felt Morgan had a choice: he could ignore Pearson’s plea and talk to someone else, but in this instance he agrees to help.
From what we’ve seen, this level of choice is threaded through the entirety of Red Dead Redemption 2. Obviously there’s a beginning and an end (or possibly even ends – we don’t know right now), but Rockstar is trying to blur the lines between what’s a story mission and what’s a side quest, instead presenting them all as opportunities given to Arthur. Many are contextual too, dependent on the time of day, where you are and who you’re with.
Choices aren’t just made at a high level either; you’ll be presented with decisions every step of the way, and how you act determines the reaction you get back. When Arthur exits the camp and rides his horse along the dirt track, he’ll soon meet other people. Much like real life, they’re a mixed bunch; some are pleasant and polite, others are less welcoming. You have complete control over how Arthur acts in the world, thanks to a sophisticated interaction system represented by a number of choices displayed in the bottom right of the screen, such as Greet or Antagonise. These dynamically change depending on a number of factors, including where you are, who you’re talking to, choices you’ve made previously in the interaction and so on, and even though most of the HUD was switched off for the demo it was still obvious how much freedom the player is given.
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