Rumors of a re-release have been circulating online for quite some time now. Red Dead Redemption. On August 7, 2023, Rockstar Games confirmed them – the studio announced it would release a port of the original game for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 on August 17. like the text of the announcement itself, were not happy. We understand what happened and why the gaming community reacted so sharply.
First rumours
Rumors of a remaster of RDR started appearing about a month ago – at the end of June. Suddenly, the first part of the series got an age rating in South Korea. True, even then we noticed an alarming fact – the number assigned to the project related to console games and differed from what is assigned to games released on the PC.
A few days later, Colin Moriarty, editor of the Western gaming publication, said in one of the episodes of the Sacred Symbols podcast that the remaster is real. He noted that work on the project was never canceled, only given more time for this process.
Also, at the end of July, Rockstar Games upgraded the game logo on its website to HD quality by adding the Rockstar Games Presents postscript to the image. With an investor meeting scheduled for August 8 by RDR owner Take-Two, fans are starting to speculate about when the company will announce the project’s existence.
Why are players so excited about a Red Dead Redemption re-release?
If you’re asking this question, you most likely missed the first part. For many, Red Dead Redemption is just as important as GTA 5, RDR 2, or any other Rockstar Games game. And more important!
Each time during the development of the project, the studio tried to jump over its head, set a new quality bar, create a game that will forever remain in the hearts of the players. And with RDR they did it.
The atmosphere of the Wild West, an intriguing and exciting plot, colorful characters, music, incredible sunsets and, of course, the ending of the game – almost all aspects of the project, from the opening theme to the credits, the players were ready to 10/10 to put.
Rockstar Games didn’t just let people play, it told a story – and told it in a way no studio could at the time. We experienced a rich adventure full of bright events and atmospheric moments.
This is not a “project for the evening”, this is a whole world, interesting both in direction and design and different mechanics working on the atmosphere from start to finish. In general, the first part of Red Dead Redemption caused a stir no less than the sequel, and for many it has become “the same game” for ages.
That’s why players have been waiting for years for the opportunity to touch the modernized icon and plunge again into the atmosphere of the Wild West – the same adventure they experienced ten years ago.
Do you love the first part of Red Dead Redemption?
Long awaited announcement and disappointment
Finally, on August 7, the company officially announced the re-release of Red Dead Redemption. The project was set to release on August 17, but, as players feared, only on the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch consoles. Moreover, the rumors turned out to be only partly true.
There is no remaster – the authors have not made any significant changes to the game, and Rockstar Games itself is not directly involved in the development. For this, Take-Two hired the Double Eleven studio, known for the console port of Rust.
A set of a single-player campaign, the Undead Nightmare add-on and bonus content of the Game of the Year edition costs $ 50 (4,800 rubles). The game will be available in Russian – and this is one of the few innovations, along with several other languages.
A wave of criticism from the players
The usual port, and even only on the “old” consoles, instead of a full-fledged remaster on current platforms, caused a wave of criticism from the gaming community. Particularly dissatisfied were the owners of the PC, who have been waiting for many years for the opportunity to play a cult project with a comfortable level of graphics and frame rate.
Some were outraged by the $50 price tag for a fairly basic port, not even on the current generation of consoles. Others complain that the port does not support 60 frames per second, even on the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch they will not be able to fully enjoy the project.
PC players have been waiting for 13 years and still can’t even access the game. Does the PS4 version also mean that the 2023 remaster of the 2010 game won’t support 60fps?
All these teasers and leaks, and this isn’t even a remaster or a remake.
For a moment I thought you’d release what we’ve all been hoping for
It was not without caustic remarks that “a 13 year old game is released on a 10 year old console”. Several users reminded the studio of her own words:
Remasters have always been part of our strategy. We do things differently than the competition because we don’t just port games. We really take the time to do our best to make sure the title is different for the new release or the new technology we’re launching it on. We improve the technology, improve the graphics and improve the performance. I think that’s why our remasters usually do so well.
To summarize the players’ comments, most are simply disappointed with the studio’s current strategy. A series of low-quality remasters amid a lack of news about new Rockstar games is damaging the company’s image, with some already calling such instances “classic moves.”
At the time of writing, the port trailer has 33,000 likes and 85,000 dislikes on YouTube.
What was shown in the trailer?
The port’s trailer is, in fact, part of the game’s bright plot points with minor gameplay inserts. Fans have already managed to compare with the original game using trailers for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.
The trailer for the Nintendo Switch version was compared to footage from the Xbox 360.
And the remastered footage from the PlayStation 4 includes footage from the Xbox One with backward compatibility technology.
As you can see in the screenshots, other than a slightly modified (but not improved) slightly, there are really no differences in the graphics. And at times, the original looks even more profitable, thanks to the right light.
Seems like a bad situation GTA: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition taught Rockstar Games nothing. The company wants to earn money quickly again with minimal investments. From a business standpoint, it probably makes sense. In terms of global reputation… Questionable.
What do you think of the situation around the port of Red Dead Redemption? Which studio projects do you think are really worthy of a full-fledged, high-quality remaster or even a remake?
What do you expect from Rockstar Games?
Source: VG Times