Red Dead Redemption - 9.5/10

Okay, calling it Grand Theft Horse isn't entirely inaccurate, but is that really a bad thing? My answer would be, no.

You play John Marston, a simple rancher with a mysterious past just trying to eek out a living in what's left of the old West during the early part of the 20th century. For reasons to be revealed, you are compelled to help federal marshals hunt down an elusive criminal that you have had some dealings with. This is a very classic western tale set in a classic western environment, and Rockstar does its utmost to make the player feel like you feel like you've just walked into a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western. And guess what, they succeeded.

Like Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption is a sprawling sandbox game giving you a large world in which to explore. Though not as teaming with detail and life as Liberty City, the south-west US and norther Mexico are still rendered with stunning fidelity. Weather and atmospheric effects are second only to Far Cry 2 from a couple of years ago. Yes, this is a game where you will stop to admire the sunsets.

The missions give you a lot do: from capturing banditos to herding cattle to playing poker. Though perhaps not quite as diverse as GTA4, the missions in the single player do start to grind a bit towards the end, and the characters don't shine quite like they do in GTA either. That said, it's still a rich and rewarding ride.

It's in the multiplayer that this game really shines. I don't think the multiplayer in GTA ever worked as well as it could have, but RDR makes up for that. The multiplayer experience starts in a 16 player Free Roam. From there you can posse up and participate in a variety of multiplayer activities: attacking NPC gang hideouts, working through coop missions, are participating in the usual fair of player versus player type games in both free for all and team modes. It's the shear variety that makes this work. Bored with PVP, then do a gang hideout or coop mission. Tired of that, maybe go hunting in Free Roam either for wild game or other players. The Free Roam also acts as a lobby of sorts, allowing players to feel each other out before deciding to play together. When you form posses, you can carry that posse with you as a team into the other multiplayer modes. It works exceedingly well.

All and all, Red Dead Redemption is the full package that everyone should check out. Easily, it is one of the best games of 2010.

Immersion: 4
Interface: 4
Game Play: 5
Challenge: 5
Fun: 5

Overall: 9.5/10