I am sure a few of you have been playing this already. Aside from FF XIV, I am kind of at a lull for games to play at the moment. I never played the first RDR, however, I understand the concept. This game looks like it could keep me occupied in my gaming but I am wondering if it is worth it. The last Rockstar game I played was GTA 4 on the Xbox 360. I played it for about 3 hours and then I got bored with it. Is this the common theme with Rockstar or should I give them another go?

Rockstar does tend to kind of plop you into an open world and gradually open up activities for you to do as time goes on. The pacing seems great with this one though...after about the first hour or two of gameplay you should be more or less "free" and through all the tutorial stuff. There does seem to be a nice variety of things to do between robbing homesteads, breaking people out of jails and killing half the town when the police come after you, stealing oil wagons to park on the train tracks so you can rob a train later, etc. I'm very happy with the missions as most of them have unique twists so you're not doing the same thing over and over.

Also the customization of the camp, Arthur himself, and your horse is pretty cool. :D

The playable area is about twice (?) the size of the first RDR if I'm not mistaken. Also, there are now dialogue choices mixed in (like a lightweight Mass Effect) that do alter the gameplay and affect you later on. People will remember your actions. I thought this was a nice touch for sure.

If you have any other questions I'd be happy to answer them as I've already spent over 10 hours on the game. But at this moment this looks like a no-brainer purchase to me; I've been enjoying the hell out of this game! If you want, you could always try the first one before you buy this...it's similar and is still a fantastic game, just a little bit more watered down compared to the new one now.

Nah I honestly don't have time to try the first one. If I get this game I am just going to jump in. I will mull it over, I need something on console to hold me over until Anthem!

The good thing is this one takes place before the first one so even though i'd suggest playing it you can honestly skip RDR . A handful of my buddies never played the first and are getting a nice surprise with this one. I generally love the games Rockstar makes and have had a lot of fun with the GTA series so I knew this game would live up to the hype. AND BOY DOES IT! So many cool little details that you can get lost in for hours. Between robbing trains, robbing people, hunting, or even just taking care of your hygiene and getting drunk with your friends haha it has a lot to offer.

Agreed! GTA is cool and all but it was always a little challenging for me to really get into it and actually complete the game...this is not the case at all with Red Dead! The early 1900s Wild West setting is pretty badass.

I think once I am done with Final Fantasy XV I will give this game a go!

Sounds good, you'll probably be right in time for Red Dead Online which is bound to be a big deal. I am assuming you still have lots of playtime in FF XV remaining though, based on how big of a game it is...?

I actually just "beat" it a few days ago. I also just finished the first DLC, Episode Gladiolus. I have two more DLC to beat and then I also have two more dungeons to complete to get all of the Astral Weapons. I have decided that I am not going to get RDR, I don't have time for that. I have a lot I want to complete in FF XIV.