Red Dead Redemption II is an undisputed masterpiece, but we still have to recognize its problems. While it was universally lauded by critics, the game seemed to receive a more lukewarm response from the general fan base, leading to some productive and intelligent discussions. Unfortunately, we can't just blindly accept everything this game has to offer.
We're not saying that these issues will be fixed, or even that fixing them is possible. We're just pointing out the issues that this game needed to iron out to guarantee perfection. These are the ten biggest fixes that Red Dead Redemption II needs to make.
10 The Movement
One of the biggest criticisms levied against the game was the awkward movement, as Arthur moved like a walking sack of bricks. His gait was way too slow, and the game proved borderline unplayable once you needed to search various homes for items. You needed to align with a specific item almost perfectly, and even when you did, Arthur would sometimes move, glide, and position himself in a very slow and laborious manner just to pick up a can of peas. It made searching areas a pain in the butt, and it made us wish there was an easier way to do so.
9 Looting
A new mechanism introduced in this game was the ability to loot bodies. Of course, you don't need to loot the corpses of your enemies, but doing so often results in obtaining valuable items, money, and ammunition.
Unfortunately, looting is a major pain that can takes minutes on end. Following a particularly large gunfight, you will be required to visit every single body and sit through the looting animation every single time. It's a major pace killer, and it's enough to make you forget about the mechanic entirely.
8 Weapon Inventory
We honestly don't know what Rockstar was thinking with this one. The weapon inventory is totally bonkers, and it is guaranteed to frustrate you at least one time in the game. Rather than keeping your specific loadout (say, a repeater and the bow), the game often resets your loadout every time you get on and off the horse, forcing you to manually select the items again every time you want to use them. To make matters even worse, the game will often force you into using a specific weapon for a mission and will even block your ability to change weapons! It's absurd.
7 Fast Travel
If you're going to make a game world this massive, you best believe you are including a fast travel mechanic. For some bizarre reason, Rockstar failed to do so. The first game allowed you to travel anywhere on the map from your campfire, and it was a godsend. However, this game forces you into riding your horse wherever you want to go, and it gets old real fast. Yeah, you can take a train or coach to your destination, but that always involves riding to the train or coach instead of just instantly teleporting. It sounds like a minor inconvenience, and it is.
6 Guarma
If Rockstar could do it all over again, we'd tell them to ditch Guarma entirely. One of the biggest complaints about this game was the entire Guarma chapter. For one thing, it effectively halted the story's pace and progression in its track, and it felt like nothing but a filler episode in one of your favorite TV shows. It also contained a pretty lame map, you didn't have access to your weapons, and there was essentially nothing to do but the story missions and bird watching. This felt like a piece of DLC randomly shoehorned into the full game, and players were not very happy about its inclusion.
5 Mission Structure
If the developers could somehow patch "more freedom" into the game, that would be greatly appreciated. We know it's not possible, but one can dream. This game's mission structure is horribly restrictive, flying in the very face of player agency and open world gaming design.
Like we already mentioned, it forces you to use specific weapons for specific missions, it tells you what to do to the very detail, and it even forces you to stop your horse or park a wagon in a specific area. God forbid if you stop your horse two feet to the left, because the game will refuse to progress until you remedy that horrid mistake.
4 A Better Shooting Mechanic
Shooting is a large part of this game's design, and you will spend a large chunk of your time as Arthur popping off on enemies, citizens, and the law alike. However, Rockstar really went out of their way to make shooting as boring and bland as possible. For one thing, the default auto-aim is an insulting inclusion, as it makes shootouts mindlessly boring and easy. But even when you rightfully turn that off, you're still left with little more than "point and shoot and sometimes activate a time-slowing mechanic." You know, the same thing we've been doing since Max Payne. In 2001.
3 Alligators
The alligators in this game are the cougars of the original Red Dead. This game desperately needs to fix how alligators function, because dealing with them is a huge pain in the neck. Luckily, they mostly stick to the swampy waters, but if you accidentally veer too close to the shore, you will be instantly one-shot by an alligator you didn't even see. They also make riding through the swamp an exercise in tedium, as your horse will constantly whine, slow, and even buckle at the mere sight of one.
2 The Overly Specific Hunting Mechanic
We love what Rockstar did with hunting in this game, but sometimes it can ridiculously frustrating. A lot of challenges require you to find a three-star animal, and this is where a lot of people run into problems. For one thing, you have to be lucky enough to run into the animal in the first place. But there's nothing more dejecting than finally finding a squirrel after twenty minutes and seeing that it's one or two-starred. And God help you if you shoot it with the wrong ammo or slightly miss your shot, because the pelt will be ruined and you'll be forced to find another three-star animal. We wouldn't blame you if you've broken a controller or two over it.
1 The Bounty Mechanic
Let's be honest here, the bounty mechanic needs some serious overhauling. Unlike GTA, you can't run wild and commit a ton of crimes. Not only will you be wanted, but you'll be stuck with a massive bounty even if you die. If you're bounty is high enough, you will be relentlessly hounded by bounty hunters, so forget enjoying the open world. The bandana/masks also do absolutely nothing, as the lawmen will be able to identify you no matter what. It doesn't make a lick of sense, and it can be immensely frustrating.