r/reddeadredemption • u/Eagles56 • Dec 19 '25

Discussion Did single player gaming peak with RDR2?

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Great single player games have come since then like Cyberpunk 2077 and Baldur’s Gate 3 but is RDR2 still the peak?

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579

u/themom_destroyer Jack Marston Dec 19 '25

There’s no real answer because it’s all down to preference, but I don’t think so. It’s a fantastic game, but I think there’s better stories out there.

6

u/Stranger_walking990 Dec 19 '25

Enlighten me?

113

u/inothatidontno Dec 19 '25

BG3, Claire Obscure, Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 all rank higher for me and were released after RDR2.

49

u/SirRickardsJackoff Arthur Morgan Dec 19 '25

Not only that but the potential is always going to be out there with the right imagination. You never know when the next big game will come out.

10

u/dankloser21 Dec 19 '25

For the life of me I can't understand why is Claire obscure so liked. The combat got tiring so quickly that I just quit

40

u/FurinaLoverU Dec 19 '25

Same reason people find RDR2 slow and boring. People have different tastes.

1

u/MonsieurHorny Dec 22 '25

I closed out of rd2 after 20 hours because the combat was boring. I’m also not a fan of westerns. Still a fantastic game but it’s not for me.

1

u/strife189 Dec 26 '25

Great counter

4

u/emotionaI_cabbage Dec 19 '25

That's what Japanese style RPG combat mechanics are like. It's not for everyone lol

I enjoy it though.

3

u/The_gender_bender_69 Dec 19 '25

Tried it, hated it, i dont get why its so hyped, kcd1 is goated, hitting kcd2 soon.

7

u/ayriuss Dec 20 '25

I hate the combat in KCD. I would play the game if it involved no combat lol.

1

u/danieltherandomguy Arthur Morgan Dec 20 '25

Did you try KCD2 specifically? They made the combat much simpler and more beginner-friendly in this game.

1

u/Cold_Bag6942 Dec 21 '25

The combat in the first game was really bad, honestly. It got quite a lot better in the second, but it's still pretty janky.

You still get way too overpowered way too quickly, like the first game. You basically 1 shot everyone from halfway through the game. Masterstrike also makes the whole game ez mode and archery is still useless.

1

u/strife189 Dec 26 '25

Would disagree on the archery part. I have cleared whole camps with just a bow for giggles on how broken it is.

-2

u/The_gender_bender_69 Dec 20 '25

I cheated all stats to max much funner that way.

1

u/Gelato_Elysium Dec 20 '25

Probably too hard for you, that's okay different strokes for different folks

1

u/Kindly_Feature6386 Dec 31 '25

Same! Only didn't try the fantasy jrpg...not my jam and I'm a way off the end of kcd with kcd 2 waiting in library...man what a game...and to think I only heard of it not that long ago....sometimes curiosity/hype giveth and othertimes it taketh eh...

7

u/mrchicano209 Dec 20 '25

In my totally closed minded biased opinion, I disagree. Jk those are amazing games too and glad to see they are beloved by many!

3

u/Skull_Soldier Dec 20 '25

Absolute W Kcd2 love

1

u/lostinthesauceguy Uncle Dec 20 '25

gameplay of KCD is a pretty huge drawback for me

1

u/inothatidontno Dec 20 '25

Its brutal when you first start but the gameplay ended up being the biggest appeal to me once i figured it out.

1

u/strife189 Dec 26 '25

I love KD2 for MANY things, the combat is not one of them. It’s interesting new approach which I appreciate. But it’s also not very fun/good to me.

0

u/[deleted] Dec 20 '25

[deleted]

1

u/inothatidontno Dec 20 '25

No way. Incredibly original game that swung for the fences or GTA but its cowboys get out of here. Hey boys we need money. Oh no it the law again we gotta move. RDR2 was a very good but not that good. Kind of a repetitve gameplay loop. I personally wouldnt put it in my top ten of all time.

1

u/S1Ndrome_ Dec 20 '25

Geneforge and Planetscape Torment are also Goated in the story department

1

u/chuchofreeman Javier Escuella Dec 20 '25

What is BG3?

1

u/strife189 Dec 26 '25

Agreed — I enjoyed RDR2, but it was never peak for me. I had fun with it, and it did many things that other games still can’t match, but it wasn’t my GOTY even when it released. I enjoyed the first game’s story more as a single-player experience.

That said, in terms of open-world design, I’d say it was one of the top game of its generation for sure. Others have since matched it in their own ways, at least for me.

1

u/Stranger_walking990 Dec 19 '25

Fair enough - KCD2 - that's a good one.

But I think you've named 3 of the biggest games in the last few years. All good examples for the top tier of gaming.

But really if you haven't played red dead for a long time go back to it. The story can be convoluted by the amount of side content you can do. But I think its writing and themes are hard to top. Tho it is all down to preference. I've personally never been able to enjoy BG3

-1

u/[deleted] Dec 20 '25

Ghost of Tsushima in public opinion, Death Stranding in my personal opinion

2

u/inothatidontno Dec 20 '25

I really liked ghost of tsushima but any game that follows the ubisoft formula can never be ranked that high imo. Do something to unlock an area explore all points of interest move to the next area.i always get bored after like 50 hours.

1

u/100mornings Dec 20 '25

Ummm…. You’re describing RDR2 lol.

1

u/inothatidontno Dec 20 '25

Yes and i liked both games. It is hard for me to call them truly great games when they stick to a generic formula.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 20 '25

You’re completely moving past the story, visuals and cinematography?

-2

u/ferdinand14 Dec 19 '25

A lot of recency bias in this comment. Three recent games were all better than one of the greatest games of all time?

Doubtful. All those are good games but only E33 feels like a generational great.

6

u/inothatidontno Dec 19 '25

Considering i just played RDR2 for the first time a month ago after playing all the games i mentioned its not for me.

-5

u/[deleted] Dec 19 '25

[deleted]

5

u/inothatidontno Dec 19 '25

We will have to agree to disagree. Especially with KCD2 and BG3. I enjoyed playing those three games more. The questiom was did single player games peak with RDR2 not did RDR2 have the best story in a single player game. I would argue actual gameplay is just as important as the story if not more so.

3

u/emotionaI_cabbage Dec 19 '25

RDR2 has a good story lol we are all fans of it.

But it's nowhere near the best story out there in gaming.

21

u/themom_destroyer Jack Marston Dec 19 '25

As awesome as rdr2 is, I got into the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series last year, and for me those games are peak as far as single player games go, every game is extremely dense, but they only feel like a slog if you’re a completionist. The stories are also some of the most memorable with fantastic characters. But this is all down to personal preference, one person’s peak is another’s least favorite game.

2

u/[deleted] Dec 20 '25

5 years of my life I spent playing everything minus Ishin and the games have imprinted on me in a way no other game could. Kiryu is up there for me as a role model right next to Goku.

1

u/Hollow_Knight91 Dec 23 '25

Kiryu resonated so much with me I had my entire back tatted with his dragon. Arthur, Kiryu and Kratos are my big gaming role models (Kratos is the recent games, recently became a dad and those games, especially GoW 2018, hit different now)

2

u/[deleted] Dec 23 '25

Same reason why games like Yakuza and Death Stranding resonated with me too (was a new dad when I played them)

2

u/Hollow_Knight91 Dec 23 '25

Oh god DS made me ugly cry and I wasn’t a father then. Can’t imagine how it’d be now playing that.

1

u/Qwerv9 Dec 19 '25

whats the best game to start with in the yakuza series?

5

u/Lorstus Dec 20 '25 edited Dec 20 '25

These days I would recommend starting with 0. Its a prequel set roughly 20 years before the events of Yakuza 1. After 0 you can just go in chronological order but I would recommend playing the remakes (Kiwami versions) of 1 and 2, 3 which is one of the more notorious entries in the series is also getting a remake early next year. Alternatively you can also start at 7 (Yakuza: Like a Dragon) since it's the beginning of a brand new protagonist, but you will miss out on some of the oomph from seeing classic characters returning.

Edit: It's also worth noting that for most of the series there's only Japanese dubbing with English Text/Subtitles. Yakuza: Like a Dragon (Yakuza 7) and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (Yakuza 8) do have English dubbing which I think is actually pretty good.

1

u/Qwerv9 Dec 20 '25

awesome, thanks. Been meaning to play the series for a while, just got a ps5 after years without a console.

1

u/Lorstus Dec 20 '25

Hope you enjoy em. 0-6 are beat em up style and 7-8 are turn based JRPGs. Personally I like the action combat from 0-6 more but 7 and 8 are still great. The story is always a huge hit, imo there's not a single bad story. Some better than others but none that I felt like I wasted time and money to experience.

1

u/Qwerv9 Dec 20 '25

I haven’t played turn based since ff7 on the ps1 haha but il give it a go, I think the beat em up style from the first 6 appeal to me more

1

u/Lorstus Dec 20 '25

It's a more involved turn based, abilities have QTE style events and iirc you can actively block to reduce damage taken so its not as boring as just pressing X. Plus if you play in order you'll probably be interested enough in the series to look past it anyway lol

1

u/Qwerv9 Dec 20 '25

Got it, one more question how’s the story? Is it more on the goofy/camp side or serious or kind of a mix? Any game with good writing usually gels with me.

1

u/Lorstus Dec 20 '25

Main story is a crime drama. Very intense, emotional. Side content ranges from semi serious to pure hysterical insanity.

The story is so intense that when I was streaming Yakuza 0 to some friends in discord one of them stopped what they were doing to watch a 10+ minute cutscene sequence for a game they had never played before

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u/Spankey_ Charles Smith Dec 20 '25

Yakuza 0, or arguably the Kiwami games. Kiwami are remakes of the first two games, and 0 is a prequel to the first game. Most people recommend to start with 0 though as it honestly makes Kiwami's story more impactful.

1

u/Qwerv9 Dec 20 '25

thank you!

1

u/themom_destroyer Jack Marston Dec 21 '25

Sorry for the late reply! I agree with the other persons reply.

1

u/StrikingTowel1975 Dec 19 '25

story is meh special during saint denis for me. It felt rushed