Red Dead Redemption 2

[PZ]

 

I died during that encounter because I did not think to exit cinematic view and was fighting the camera as I tried to fight the gang! Quite funny it was 

[LowPolyOWG]

 

Well, R* "patched" the online mode. Increased the gold bar earn rate and reduced weapon prices. Sure, everyone got 15 gold bars/$250 as a "thank you for supporting us", but doesn't change anything that RDR2 Online is a chore

[PZ]

It will be intersting to see how it will go.

I encountered a bad aspect of the game this morning. The entire southwest section of the map, about 1/3 the total is apparently off-limits until you complete the game according to online sources. I tried to go southwest this morning, and as soon as I crossed a border, I became "wanted dead or alive", and was overwhelmed by a dozen or more deputies within minutes. I tried again, except this time sneaking off-road, but was again found within minutes and dispatched - there is no way they could have seen me. It is actually worse than the merc awareness in FC2!

That is when I did an online search and discovered that the map is off-limits until you complete the game - lame if you ask me. This is actually worse than the UBI*bleep* game mandatory progression map reveals - in this case it seems to be the case that you need to complete the game to enter the area, which is quite large.

We'll see if it is true - I'm now in chapter 3, and will periodically revisit the area.

[PZ]

Have been doing missions in chapter 3 and still no clear access to the southwest.

Another characteristic that is less than desirable: I was using a rolling block sniper rifle with a really long range. I shot at a guy so far the only indicator I had was the red dot indicating I was properly aimed at him. When I shot, he did not die right away even though I was using Express rounds. Here's the kicker - every guy in the area instantly knew exactly where I was, (all 15 of them) and I did not survive the encounter.

Remind you of anything?

[Art Blade]

the mortar merc.

[PZ]

 

That, and all other areas where the mercs knew exactly where you are with the slightest stimulation. Very old school of Rockstar however, the environment is so advanced state-of-the-art, it is disheartening to realize that some of the mechanics come out of early 2000 games.

[Art Blade]

having problems with stealth sniper shots is apparently not only true for UBI*bleep* and Rockstar but also for IOI/Warner with Hitman Season 1 and Hitman 2.

[LowPolyOWG]

Suppressors wasn't a thing until 1902. PZ, you went to the RDR1 area. After the failed heist you started the story with, you are wanted dead by that region. It might sound odd that you need to finish the story to get it done, but you will understand in the end what happens. Not going to spoil it so, figure it out for yourself  It kind of makes sense, I would imagine state borders being monitored for wanted people if they pose a threath. And you are fleeing from the law.

R*'s definition of stealth is literally Ubisoft back in 2008... GTA V got the same problem, I recall we triggered the bloody alarm everytime on the server heist 

[PZ]

Yeah, one would need to mod the game like I did in FC2 in order to get weapons that behaved in a more reasonable way. I dislike having to jump through hoops to achieve a reasonable weapon. Like I complained about since FC2, starting with nothing and having to w0#k your way through hoops just to get something usable is not what I want in a game. After all, in real life, even as a totally inexperienced person finding a top notch weapon somewhere in the world, I'd still be able to use it with some degree of success; at least the potential is there.

In this instance, I was so far away (and hidden) that it is entirely unreasonable for everyone in the entire area to determine my location, and deliver devastating fire within no more than a second and a half - that stinks  bit too much like circa 2008 FC2 programming.  There is no way that the enemy could realistically determine my location that quickly - the advantage is entirely on the enemy side. In order for that to be equitable, then when encountering a group of enemy, my dead-eye lock on should automatically be on all of them instantly without having me to do anything.

I was using a sniper rifle maxed out, and I wouldn't mind shooting and then having to sneak around while they looked for me, but that is not even remotely possible in this game - once you shoot, no matter how far, and stealthy, and they immediately know where you are an rush you, just like FC2.

[Art Blade]

reminds me of times long gone when people on the net used to type on screen, "you mad bro?"

And you're right, it's ridiculous.

[PZ]

Yeah, I guess one could say I'm not to happy with that aspect of the game, but there is so much else that is rather good I'm trying to overlook the bad parts. I just wish they could apply the great parts of what they have developed to ALL aspects of the game, and not revert to old-school simplistic programming (for what reason I do not know, and certainly do not care).

There is a new feature that I really like - if you are working through a mission and you fail numerous times, you can choose to bypass that checkpoint and continue. I cannot count the number of times I have been in a rage in a game because the player needed to pass some stupid timed task in order to continue (FC5 comes to mind). These kinds of things often make me put the game away, sometimes never to be played again, which is stupid programming on the part of the developer in my opinion. The person playing needs to be given the options to continue rather than making them so frustrated they dump the game leaving a sour taste in their mouthes.

[LowPolyOWG]

Well, 100+ hour works week because publishers can treat their employees like *bleep* and still make piles of money Perhaps they could have fixed that, if the developers got proper time to rest and got fairly compensated (no, they don't get union benefits as seen in other industries, voice actors striked because game publishers deliberate reduced their pay).

[Art Blade]

it has turned into a malicious business, the bigger the companies get. Not all of them are bad but you can almost bet that eventually, if they survive and grow bigger, they'll take the same path.

[LowPolyOWG]

Yeah and the same companies says they don't have enough money despite selling microtransactions and the Ultimate Collector's Edition with additional bonuses

Anyway, RDR2 got the micro err Micah Bell's GIGATRANSACTIONS enabled today 

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/red-dead-online-microtransactions-now-live/1100-6463919/

Lol, Ubisoft's Silver bar packs in Far Cry 5 feels more generous in comparison Also, you can get them from Uplay club weekly/daily assignments, while that is non-existent in RDR2... To an extent, GTA Online Shark Cards are more generous than this... 350 Gold bars lets you buy either; Gold paint for like 10 guns/6 arabian horses/6-8 high level items of clothing... and all the late game weapons/change your honour rating 100 times. 8 million lets you buy a cheap high-end apartment, the DLC weapons and a MOC. And a sweet DLC ride.

Can't wait for the riot when R* adds DLC weapons that can be bought with gold

[PZ]

Well, that's disturbing. I was looking forward to playing online, but maybe now not so much.

However, because of the gold bar glitch in SP, I can still harvest 30 gold bars per save, and have done so 5 times so far. I guess I can think of it as having saved $50 real dollars.