One of the best games ever made. Without hyperbole, this was probably my second or third favorite "first playthrough" of all time (MHGU kicks it off the top spot). I like open world games that let you explore, I like RPG mechanics, and I like hunting. As someone who never played RDR1, I went into this game essentially blind, and it is an experience. For me, this game is a 10/10, but if you're a 100percenter, there are definitely some frustrating elements that may turn off people from doing EVERYTHING like I did.

PROS:
- Arthur Morgan is in the Pantheon of great video game protagonists. He's up there with Big Boss for me, and that is saying something. Shepard, Geralt, and Travis Touchdown are close seconds, but man the journey you take with Arthur (and it really is YOU taking it with the honor choices) is pretty special. He's not a faceless self-insert, which makes the few decisions you do get to make matter that much more through the lens of his character. He has some of the best character moments I've ever seen in a game (that dialogue on the train station bench...) and it's not even all serious, he's funny as hell. He broke the damn wheel.

- I like hunting animals. I have hundreds of hours in theHunter:COTW. RDR2 lets you hunt lots of animals.

- The story is pretty good. Most of the characters behave believably, with a few strange exceptions, and it's easy to invest in the Van der Linde gang if you care. It's also insanely easy to not give a damn about them if you don't want to engage, but the story in a general sense can pull you in.

- You can be cruel as hell to almost anyone you don't like, and it is cathartic to violate the Eighth Amendment on them O'Driscolls.

- The world is rich and deep, with so many odd things to find if you head off the beaten path. What the heck is the witch's circle in the north? The homunculus creature in the boarded up house? What's going on with the Stranger in the sidequest that has you find rock carvings? If you care about discovering things on your own, the game provides ample opportunities to do that.

- You can do almost anything you want as long as you're willing to suffer the consequences (or reload the game). I must have wiped out the Saint Denis police force 3 or 4 times with those numbers.

- American Venom

CONS:
- Micah

- Horses

- Horse movement is finnicky and requires a bit of experience to get used to. Wish I'd realized earlier that not spamming the run key when running through forests actually lets the horse autocorrect around trees. My horses are all dumb as hell and I have fallen off a lot. At least I learned the "pet as you gallop to reduce stamina consumption" early.

- Killing horses reduces honor

- Killing dogs reduces honor

- Some of the things the characters do really make you wonder if the Van der Linde gang are just stupid. How are you robbing the town you're camping next to while laying low guys? Are you actually career criminals? There's a surprising amount of hair-tearing story moments, but that's a bit nitpicky.

- Oh man if you want to collect or farm anything without a guide, you might be looking a while. I only gave up and used one to finish off the orchid collection and dinosaur bones, but there was lots and lots of fruitless wandering to find out where cougars and panthers spawned, where Indian Tobacco was, where to find gold rings, it's a chore if you're not immersed in it.

- Hunting certain animals deserves its own point cause ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ those little birds that you'll end up needing are annoying as ♥♥♥♥ to find and shoot. Hunting big game is mostly fine, even moose weren't too bad for me but the little robin and oriole chicks? My God.

- Without the satchel to store 99 of everything, you can't store anything it feels like. 5 is not a high stack cap. Getting that satchel can be damn frustrating if you don't want to engage with the hunting mechanic, so good luck with that.

- Current outfit always taking up a slot in the horse and randomly erasing something you have stored when you pick up a hat is frustrating.

- Unable to save every single hat you pick up. I had to kill a sheriff every time I somehow lost my 10 gallon Stetson.

- The menu wheel to select items took a lot of getting used to for me, release to equip was weird at the start.

- The snowy area that the game starts in is straight ass and was annoying to complete

Most of the cons I've listed are personal gripes with the game as opposed to poor design decisions. I will note that the game is long, even if you don't complete everything and focus on the story, and if you don't care to chase animals, large portions of the game will feel useless to you. Other than that, there isn't much that I think is wrong with RDR2. Playing this game was one of the best video game experiences I've ever had, and I think it's earned all the praise it gets and then some. One of the few things I've been recommened that I will say is not overrated.

One of the best games ever made. Without hyperbole, this was probably my second or third favorite "first playthrough" of all time (MHGU kicks it off the top spot). I like open world games that let you explore, I like RPG mechanics, and I like hunting. As someone who never played RDR1, I went into this game essentially blind, and it is an experience. For me, this game is a 10/10, but if you're a 100percenter, there are definitely some frustrating elements that may turn off people from doing EVERYTHING like I did. PROS: - Arthur Morgan is in the Pantheon of great video game protagonists. He's up there with Big Boss for me, and that is saying something. Shepard, Geralt, and Travis Touchdown are close seconds, but man the journey you take with Arthur (and it really is YOU taking it with the honor choices) is pretty special. He's not a faceless self-insert, which makes the few decisions you do get to make matter that much more through the lens of his character. He has some of the best character moments I've ever seen in a game (that dialogue on the train station bench...) and it's not even all serious, he's funny as hell. He broke the damn wheel. - I like hunting animals. I have hundreds of hours in theHunter:COTW. RDR2 lets you hunt lots of animals. - The story is pretty good. Most of the characters behave believably, with a few strange exceptions, and it's easy to invest in the Van der Linde gang if you care. It's also insanely easy to not give a damn about them if you don't want to engage, but the story in a general sense can pull you in. - You can be cruel as hell to almost anyone you don't like, and it is cathartic to violate the Eighth Amendment on them O'Driscolls. - The world is rich and deep, with so many odd things to find if you head off the beaten path. What the heck is the witch's circle in the north? The homunculus creature in the boarded up house? What's going on with the Stranger in the sidequest that has you find rock carvings? If you care about discovering things on your own, the game provides ample opportunities to do that. - You can do almost anything you want as long as you're willing to suffer the consequences (or reload the game). I must have wiped out the Saint Denis police force 3 or 4 times with those numbers. - American Venom CONS: - Micah - Horses - Horse movement is finnicky and requires a bit of experience to get used to. Wish I'd realized earlier that not spamming the run key when running through forests actually lets the horse autocorrect around trees. My horses are all dumb as hell and I have fallen off a lot. At least I learned the "pet as you gallop to reduce stamina consumption" early. - Killing horses reduces honor - Killing dogs reduces honor - Some of the things the characters do really make you wonder if the Van der Linde gang are just stupid. How are you robbing the town you're camping next to while laying low guys? Are you actually career criminals? There's a surprising amount of hair-tearing story moments, but that's a bit nitpicky. - Oh man if you want to collect or farm anything without a guide, you might be looking a while. I only gave up and used one to finish off the orchid collection and dinosaur bones, but there was lots and lots of fruitless wandering to find out where cougars and panthers spawned, where Indian Tobacco was, where to find gold rings, it's a chore if you're not immersed in it. - Hunting certain animals deserves its own point cause GODDAMN those little birds that you'll end up needing are annoying as fuck to find and shoot. Hunting big game is mostly fine, even moose weren't too bad for me but the little robin and oriole chicks? My God. - Without the satchel to store 99 of everything, you can't store anything it feels like. 5 is not a high stack cap. Getting that satchel can be damn frustrating if you don't want to engage with the hunting mechanic, so good luck with that. - Current outfit always taking up a slot in the horse and randomly erasing something you have stored when you pick up a hat is frustrating. - Unable to save every single hat you pick up. I had to kill a sheriff every time I somehow lost my 10 gallon Stetson. - The menu wheel to select items took a lot of getting used to for me, release to equip was weird at the start. - The snowy area that the game starts in is straight ass and was annoying to complete Most of the cons I've listed are personal gripes with the game as opposed to poor design decisions. I will note that the game is long, even if you don't complete everything and focus on the story, and if you don't care to chase animals, large portions of the game will feel useless to you. Other than that, there isn't much that I think is wrong with RDR2. Playing this game was one of the best video game experiences I've ever had, and I think it's earned all the praise it gets and then some. One of the few things I've been recommened that I will say is not overrated.