Red Dead Redemption 2 is an astonishingly detailed game, with players still discovering hidden Easter eggs, dialogue, and hidden story moments years after its initial release. Rockstar's epic has a story as cinematic as some of the best western movies, its characters and their relationships are complex, its world immense and beautifully rendered. The game itself may be one of a kind, but there are others that manage to match its ambition in their own genres.
Players looking for an experience like Red Dead Redemption 2 might find themselves turning to other western games. To really find games that capture the scale and depth of the Red Dead 2 experience, however, they need to look to titles with the same artistic ambition, beautiful worlds, and stories that aren't afraid to dive into the complicated relationships between their characters. Here are just some of the games any Red Dead 2 fan needs to check out.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt may be a fantasy RPG, but it has a lot in common with Red Dead Redemption 2. The game's world is huge, and the story sprawls multiple distinct chapters as Geralt of Rivia tries to track down his estranged adopted daughter Ciri. As in all of the Witcher stories - and Red Dead 2 - the game revels in its moral ambiguity.
Geralt, like Arthur, is a professional killer, and with the Northern kingdoms at war, Velen is transformed into a brutal frontier. Like Red Dead, the game also has its fair share of lighter, comedic moments, as well as the possibility of a seriously dark ending to Geralt's story if the player makes certain decisions. With a beautiful open world and a complex protagonist navigating its moral ambiguities, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a great game for any Red Dead 2 fan to check out.
God of War
The 2018 God of War, like Red Dead Redemption, deals with decline, cycles of violence, and fraught interpersonal relationships. Kratos, the player character from the original hack-and-slash trilogy, now finds himself an older man raising his son in the wake of his wife's death.
When they set off to scatter her ashes they become embroiled in the schemes of the gods once again, and Kratos struggles to keep his past from his son. Like Arthur Morgan, Kratos is a man haunted by his actions, unsure of whether or not he is able to redeem himself let alone whether he is worthy of redemption at all. It may be another fantasy game, but God of War has a fantastic story and tone to match Red Dead's best moments.
Grand Theft Auto 5
It isn't surprising that Grand Theft Auto 5, the most recent game in Rockstar's other flagship franchise, has a lot in common with Red Dead Redemption 2. What is surprising, however, is Rockstar's ability to deliver yet another massive open world full of strange characters, funny asides, and a compelling main plot.
Just like Red Dead 2, Grand Theft Auto 5 follows characters struggling to escape their criminal pasts, albeit it with far more opportunities for comedically over-the-top mayhem. Michael, Franklin, and Trevor are some of the studio's most memorable characters to date. Like Red Dead 2, the game starts in the wake of a failed robbery. Michael, like John Marston in the original Red Dead, turns to the feds in the hope that he can leave his past behind. It isn't long, however, before impulsive behavior starts the cycle of violence spinning again, and the three protagonists find themselves at each other's throats.
The Last Of Us
The Last of Us games are great for any gamer looking for a tightly wound and unabashedly cinematic story. Like Red Dead Redemption 2 the games deal with revenge, fighting against seemingly hopeless odds in a world which seems to be closing in around the main characters, and even some of the surprising deaths that originally helped put the first Red Dead Redemption on the map.
Set in a post-apocalyptic world where the Cordyceps virus has turned much of humanity into aggressive zombie-like creatures, The Last of Us' real stakes lie in the relationship between Joel and Ellie, which changes dramatically over the course of both games, and not always for the better. Players looking for a story that shows just how cinematic the artform can be need look no further than The Last of Us and its 2020 sequel.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Red Dead Redemption 2's fictionalized take on its historical setting is hard to match, but if there's one game that creates a historically-based world that's as immersive, it's Kingdom Come: Deliverance. Set in the 15th century in the Holy Roman Empire, the game's first-person perspective and dedication to historical accuracy make it one of few to really bring the brutal violence and almost alien religious fanaticism of early modern Europe to life. The game is so entrenched in real history that studying the history of Bohemia might even be considered a spoiler. This open-world RPG is a great addition to any Red Dead 2 fan's collection.
Ghost Of Tsushima
Another great game in the historical fiction genre, Ghost of Tsushima sees players take on the role of Jin, the surviving samurai of a devastating attack on the Japanese island of Tsushima by Mongol forces in the 1200s. Fans of Red Dead's fast-paced quick-draw combat will likely love Lethal mode, which makes sword-fights extremely deadly for the player and their enemies alike, forcing them to realistically parry enemies and wait for openings to strike. As with Red Dead 2, the game takes place on an open-world map, has some memorable characters, and has some heartbreaking dramatic moments.
Red Dead Redemption 2 may be hard to beat, but these games manage to live up to its almost-insurmountable standard. Despite spanning a wide array of genres, they all manage to deliver fantastic stories in impressively crafted worlds.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.