We’ve often wondered why we don’t see many cowboy games nowadays. Whether it’s the lawless, dusty settings where death or fortune may be waiting over the next hill, the ample scope for spaghetti western cheesiness, or the capacity to be good or bad, it’s somewhat perplexing that more developers haven’t shunned the contemporary and the futuristic settings we’re all used to, to take us off into the untamed world of the virtual Wild West.
But with the 360 now knocking on three years old and with only two western games to show for it – Call of Juarez and Gun, neither of which being anything more than middling efforts – it seems we’ve been left high and dry. However, there may be hope on the horizon in the form of Red Dead Redemption, which is thundering towards the 360 with the ferocity of a full cavalry charge. Although details are sketchy at the moment, Rockstar’s title isn’t without pedigree.
Redemption is the follow-up to Red Dead Revolver, which as long-term Xbox fans (and indeed, former PS2 owners) will be able to testify, is no bad thing. While not the deepest game to ever appear under the Rockstar label, Red Dead Revolver nevertheless placed a series of very pleasing ticks in all the right boxes: you could ride horses, enjoy a wonderfully clichéd story and take part in plenty of shoot-outs. And so far, Redemption is looking like it’ll be picking up from where its predecessor left off. As with the original, the familiar dusty landscapes look like they were lifted straight out of a traditional western film. As such, this means cactus-strewn vistas and ramshackle Wild West towns – complete with crooked-plank wooden houses – will be the norm.
However, with nigh-on five years and one whole generation separating the two games, Redemption is already a much more visually impressive game. Although the images dotted around these two pages are still early, the usual refinements are all present: the characters look more detailed, the overall level of detail in the landscapes is greater, the textures sharper and things like the shadow effects more prominent than was the case last time around. But the most striking visual aspect of these early shots are the lighting effects, be it the way light filters through a door or how idyllic the dramatic, dust-tinted sunsets look. It’s clear that Rockstar’s RAGE engine is once again set to deliver the goods.
That said; whether the gameplay will match the graphics is something of a mystery, as Rockstar and its San Diego studio have yet to reveal much about the ins and outs of their latest game. Redemption is set at the turn of the last century (as industrialisation set in and the US government started to tame the West), and tells the story of former outlaw, John Marston. A combination of breathtaking beauty and intense action is promised, as are a storyline with strong plot points and a massive rural environment to explore. According to Rockstar, gunfights will be included (not that we weren’t expecting them), as will a host of unique characters, with the story focusing on the death of the last Wild West gunfighters.
Quite how this will translate into a fully-fledged game is, at present, anyone’s guess – although expect a steady trickle of information as the Red Dead Redemption’s release (currently pencilled in for the autumn months of this very year) draws closer. And as soon as that starts to happen, we should have a much clearer idea of whether it will have the substance to match its visual style.
