Red Dead Redemption - Multiplayer Preview

GTA IV’s multiplayer component can essentially be divided into two schools of thought: those who prefer auto-lock targeting, and ardent defenders of unassisted targeting. Crucially, settings for one or the other system have to be specified in a pre-game lobby, which has made for a constant bone of contention among players. Here at TVG we’ve always stuck with auto-lock targeting, mostly because the unassisted system often results in an elaborate ballet of death whenever an adversary comes into view - you end up running around each other in circles, occasionally for minutes at a time, trying desperately to land a shot and avoid being hit at the same time (like a mating dance for sociopaths). Whenever we’ve chosen auto-targeting as a host to avoid this though, it’s invariably ended up in protests from a strong contingent of the lobby.

In all fairness, we can see their point: the auto-targeting is perhaps a little too clinical and allows players to effortlessly flit between opponents using the right thumbstick (where’s the skill in that?). Thankfully then, Red Dead Redemption will finally dissolve this lobby divide as if it were Ulysses S. Grant riding his Union troops into battle against the Confederacy (What? It’s a viable reference. Redemption is a Western after all). Anyway, the reason for this is the game’s subtler use of auto-aim, which makes for a reticule that becomes increasingly ‘sticky’ as it nears enemies but stops well short of steadfastly locking to a target as GTA IV does. It provides multiplayer gunplay that’s fast-paced and addictive but still manages to draw a decent amount of skill out of its user to acquire a high level of mastery.

Right off the bat then, Rockstar San Diego has managed to rectify a problem that’s troubled GTA IV’s multiplayer over the past couple of years. In terms of pure gunplay then – where Red Dead Redemption dresses you up to the nines with ye olde shotguns, pistols, rifles (snipers too), Gatling guns, and even the occasional canon – it is a more engaging experience than GTA IV’s multiplayer (shock horror!). We wouldn’t dare to make such a comparison about the single-player games at this early stage, and we’re not suggesting that GTA IV’s multiplayer is lacklustre by any stretch of the imagination. Indeed, one area where the Rockstar North developed title is more sumptuous than Redemption is its range of modes.

While GTA IV offered a grand total of 15 modes (give or take a few, depending on whether you include variants), Redemption will be minimised down to four (five if you include Free Roam mode). It’s undeniably a slimmed down approach, which focuses on a solid experience over a small range of modes rather than a wider array of diluted modes that suffer from unbalanced gameplay. It’s also worth noting that many of GTA IV’s multiplayer modes simply wouldn’t have been tenable in a Wild-West setting (the various race modes, for example, wouldn’t have quite the same appeal if you swapped a Mustang-esque muscle car for an actual mustang).

Shootout and Gang Shootout modes form the essential deathmatch and team deathmatch offerings. There’s not much to report here beyond what you’d assume, such as maps that are tight enough to keep the action flowing but not so tight as to constrain it. One welcome feature is the inclusion of ‘Dead-eye’ from Redemption’s single-player. Essentially a bullet-time variant, ‘Dead-eye’ works via a meter that can either be gradually built up with streaked kills or, in the multiplayer, by finding crates that instantly replenish the meter. Clicking-in the right thumbstick then initiates ‘Dead-eye’ from your perspective (although crucially, not your adversaries’) and allows you to paint a number of targets which then have bullets automatically dispensed towards them when you click out of the mode.

‘Dead-eye’ was quite strongly balanced in the build we played and could be taken advantage of to brutal affect once we got the knack of it. It’s also usable in the two other multiplayer modes (Gold Rush and Hold Your Own), both of which revolve around acquiring bags of gold, but to markedly different aims. Gold Rush simply spawns numerous bags of gold in a map and players then have to retrieve the bags and place them in one of multiple repositories to score a point. A risk-reward system comes from the fact you can two bags at one time, although this results in slower movement and essentially makes you a sitting duck for opponents to take out and steal the re-dispensed loot.

Hold Your Own then acts as a variant of capture the flag, except with gold rather than flags. The build we played through had a noticeably larger map for Hold Your Own compared to the other three modes mentioned above and, additionally, the inclusion of canon emplacements and Gatling guns in the middle of the map made for a fearsome land-grab dynamic between the two teams. Capturing either of these two positions helped our team pin-down enemy forces and stop opportunist attackers from getting anywhere near our gold, although the map’s layout also limited each emplacement’s range. In its entirety, the map was wide enough for our enemies to avoid the range of either the Gatling guns or canon if they gave them a particularly wide berth, so there was always a need to be vigilant regardless of how strongly positioned our team was.

And finally there’s the Free Roam mode, which takes on a more dynamic approach than its GTA IV counterpart. While the latter merely opened up the whole of Liberty City for players to roam around in aimlessly with no objectives or missions, Red Dead Redemption’s Free mode provides a variety of challenges to keep players busy. The key is forming an online posse of up to 8 players (although up to 16 players can populate a Free Roam game at one time) and journeying out into the game world to see what kind of adventure and lawlessness you can find in the various challenges:

Hunting challenges pit players against a dangerous animal from its indigenous area of the game world. Once triggered, these challenges send waves of said animal at your posse in what can only be described as Monster Hunter goes Western, and it only gets more Monster Hunter-esque with Survivalist challenges, which have you seeking out rare herbs from the environment while avoiding the attentions of (or killing) deadly predators. Sharpshooter challenges are ongoing and persistent throughout the free roam mode (e.g. shooting a weapon out of an enemy's hand, Eastwood style), while Lawbringer and Outlaw challenges round off the gameplay by dishing out skirmishes against NPC gangs at specific strongholds (Lawbringer) and completing certain tasks -  such as earning killstreaks - while holding a Wanted level (Outlaw).

One final nifty touch is how Rockstar San Diego has opted to kick-off the previously mentioned Gold Rush and Shootout modes with a 'pistols at dawn' style duel. While Gang Shootout has each team facing each other, Free For All Shootout and Gold Rush pits every man for himself by making them stand around in a circular formation. The aim, as you might have guessed, is to draw your gun and pull the trigger before the enemy facing you does. Of course, after the initial bullets land there's usually a lot of afters as the surviving players take cover and fight for survival. On one occasion we decided to stand still, holster our gun, and simply watch the fray. Rather comically, everyone else shot each other, leaving us as the winners – result!

Despite the fact that Red Dead Redemption doesn't offer quite as wide a range of multiplayer modes as GTA IV, the modes it does offer are solidly designed. The standard deathmatch and capture the flag variants come alongside specifically designed maps, a well incorporated 'Dead-eye' mode, and just the right amount of gunplay to keep things frantic, challenging, and fun. While the most novel experience will no doubt come from the expansive Free Roam mode, there appears to be more than enough depth throughout to keep gamers filling the lobbies after Redemption's release next month.