Upon release, Red Dead Redemption 2 became an instant hit critically acclaimed far and wide. There are a ton of reasons for this, ranging from the general popularity of the first game and the heart-wrenching story to the mysteries found throughout Red Dead Redemption 2 and the overarching design of the game's map.
There have been comparisons of RDR 2's map to games like Skyrim, but beyond the sheer size of it, it does something that maps fail to do. It brings the game to life through environmental storytelling that hasn't really been replicated since.
Red Dead Redemption 2: The Map is Alive
Environmental storytelling can be conceptualized in a variety of ways, one of which is that the area tells its own story, and this is true for practically every location in Red Dead Redemption 2 does this. From the basics of a frontier town to the ongoing spread and development of the Pinkerton agency, from the areas that are defined by characters like Gavin to mysterious areas like the Ghost Train, and from small details like the conversations between NPCs to hidden characters like the giant, this seems like there's a no brain.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is still so alive, yet there's more to it than that. Players still to this day find more secrets, such as Arthur's bullet counting, but then the map and environment have their own secrets. One player recently discovered that a real-world event between wildlife takes place, and that's where sometimes when Bucks fight, one will kill the other but remained locked. This eventually results in both's death and is a morbid thing to think about, yet does exactly what it is meant to do.
Red Dead Redemption 2: Capturing the Spirit of the Wild West
Furrthermore, beckoning back to the aforementioned comparisons, there are some games that could effectively take place anywhere. The map sometimes is just an attachment to the whole experience in lieu of this, and of course, this often depends on genre and other factors. However, that cannot be said about Red Dead Redemption 2; historical aspects aside, the clear set-up of the world lore through environmental storytelling means this could not take place anywhere else.
This may seem like a small thing, but loading up RDR2 2 years ago or now in 2020 results in players learning something new. Sometimes, it's about Arthur, John, or even the recently discovered detail about Jack, but other times, it's about the very world they've entered. That's environmental storytelling at its finest.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is out now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.