Yesterday I was wondering when the movie Django Unchained came out on Blu-ray and started to think about westerns. I really enjoy the genre, the stories, the scenery, and the music they all bring a smile to my face. But what made me smile most was thinking about one of the greatest moments from any video game I have ever played.
Anyone who has played Red Dead Redemption can tell you exactly how it feels when you cross into Mexico for the first time, and it is by far one of my favorite moments. For those of you who haven’t and have avoided spoilers this whole time, I’ll do my best to avoid any spoilers.
Red Dead Redemption is a open world story driven game by Rockstar, and similar in many ways to Grand Theft Auto 4. But it’s main difference is setting. Rather than another present day or fantasy setting the Red Dead Series takes place in the historical “old west”complete with horses, cowboys, and indians. The story itself is heavily influenced by the “spagetti western” and to me stands out as one of the better stories told in any single game of this generation of consoles.
The game centers around the character John Marston, who is ordered by the government to hunt down the remaining members of his outlaw gang to save his family. For the next few hours you ride across the country side doing side quests and following leads.
During this time you really start to understand John more as a character, and who he is. You discover that he really is just a good guy doing whatever it takes to make a better life for his son. While you play you start to hear more and more about Mexico, and eventually you get the chance to attempt crossing the “San Luis” river. The only way across ends up being a raft and a rope to pull it across. Of course while you are crossing the raft gets attacked, and you end up floating down the river trying to fend off the bandits, and make it to the other side.
Eventually after several minutes of shooting and floating you make it across the river and onto solid land. The whole experience feels draining, and exhausting. By the time I got onto one of the bandits horses I just wanted to get to a town and save the game. But then as I started riding, the sky started to brighten up, and a soft acoustic guitar started playing. (Far Away for those interested in hearing the song) I kept riding and realized that I was tired of the game by design, the developers wanted me to feel the sense of exhaustion and near hopelessness that my character felt. It is wonderfully crafted, the scenery is amazing, the song is perfect and it made me realize just how good the story in some games can be.
It is still one of my favorite moments from any game ever. Narrowly beating out the moment when you pull the Sword of Time from its pedestal in Ocarina of Time.
So that’s my favorite moment, I would love to hear yours in the comments below!
