Things In Red Dead Redemption 2 That Made Us Want To Rage Quit
Don't take this article the wrong way — Red Dead Redemption 2 is truly an achievement in game development and design. A whole lot of people worked tirelessly to build the game's massive world, weave together its story, fill every town full of interesting souls, and somehow make all of those elements sing. The game is worthy of the awards it was nominated for and those it won. And when Red Dead Redemption 3 rolls around, we'll be right in line to play it.
But that doesn't mean that Red Dead 2 doesn't have some things we don't like about it. And some of those things? They've occasionally made us want to stop playing.
Whether they're related to the way the game is structured, the way the characters control, or the way some aspects feel unfair, there have been a few instances where a full-on rage quit would've been totally understandable. We've collected all of these moments below, both as a sort of warning to players, and — perhaps — as a plea to Rockstar Games to never do this stuff again.
Here are the things in Red Dead Redemption 2 that made us want to rage quit.
Realizing we have to travel to the other side of the map
The campaign in Red Dead Redemption 2 is very long. And sure, for some people, that might seem like a pro instead of a con. You're getting your money's worth! That is dozens of hours of fantastic Rockstar Games storytelling! But anyone who thinks that clearly hasn't loaded up Red Dead 2 and played through it for any significant amount of time.
It becomes apparent early on why the game takes so long to finish, and it isn't because Rockstar packed every hour with narrative. It's because the game insists on making you travel just about everywhere manually, either on foot or on horseback. This is easy to ignore in the beginning stages of the game, when you're taking in all of the lush detail of Red Dead Redemption 2's world. But when a mission asks you to travel from one side of the map to the other 20 hours in, there's a good chance you'll want to throw your controller to the ground and call it a day.
Oh, and by the way, the 20-hour mark is only halfway through the game. You can imagine how you'll feel about a long trek after that point.
Getting shot to death while using the auto-ride feature
Rockstar Games made just about everything in Red Dead Redemption 2 rewarding, but that doesn't change how many things feel like chores. You'll even find that riding your horse requires you to hold a button down the entire time, or time button presses to gallops for maximum efficiency. That is, unless you use the auto-ride feature, which puts the camera into a sort of cinematic mode and instantly points your character in the direction of the waypoint you set.
The problem is, the world of Red Dead Redemption 2 doesn't care if you're auto-riding while sitting in front of the TV or if you've gone to make yourself a sandwich while your character is in transit. It keeps on living. And the bad guys still want to kill you.
If you set yourself to auto-ride and walk away, you shouldn't be entirely surprised if you come back and find you're dead. Rival gangs still roam the roads and trails in Red Dead 2. And the law is still in the lookout if you have outstanding bounties. You may believe you've found some loophole that lets you catch up on some email while Arthur or John make their way across the map to the mission target. But really, all you're doing is leaving yourself vulnerable to attack. Thanks, Rockstar.
Getting robbed without being able to retaliate
Unless you were fortunate enough to use some kind of gold bar exploit, money is extremely hard to come by in Red Dead Redemption 2. Your share of gang robberies is pretty paltry. It seems like anyone you hold up yourself is poor as hell. And if you want your character to wear some nicer clothes or shoot some nicer guns, you're going to have to spend that dough.
Which is why it's wholly frustrating to be robbed totally blind without being able to hunt down the jerks who stole from you.
There's one instance in Saint Denis where this occurs. You're knocked out from behind, and come to only to find that your cash has been swiped. Those who assaulted you are nowhere in sight, of course, and no amount of hunting will lead you to their doorstep. That money is simply gone forever. You'll never get to exact your revenge. And if you had plans for how you were going to spend that money, well, too bad.
To put so much time into growing your wealth, only for it to be gone in an instant, is always enough to send you into a fit of rage.
Accidentally committing a crime when all we want to do is get on our horse
Even the most die-hard Red Dead Redemption 2 fans will admit that Rockstar may have tried to do way too much with the game. There are unique actions for almost anything you can do. Controller buttons perform those different actions depending on the situation. It's entirely possible to take a step back and see the same button now does something totally different, just because you aren't standing next to a drawer, or a person you can interact with ... or your horse.
For reasons that are unknown — and reasons that cause Red Dead 2 players much frustration — Rockstar mapped the action for getting on your horse to the same button as the one used to tackle someone. If you're in a crowded town and someone happens to be standing next to your horse, you can understand why this might have some unintended consequences. All you might want to do is saddle up and get to the next mission in piece. But if you accidentally perform a takedown on an innocent bystander, you'll start a fight with them, and you'll have the law on your back as a result.
It's infuriating. And you'd be totally justified in shutting the game down so you can cool off.
Losing access to some quests after Arthur's story
The world of Red Dead Redemption 2 is full of story missions, side quests, and mysteries. Not only that, the game encourages you to explore every nook and cranny. You can log every animal species into a database. You can craft items from their hides. You can play for probably 100 hours and never finish everything. But some people like to try by revisiting the game's world after they get through the main story campaign.
Unfortunately, there's a problem with that approach. You see, Red Dead Redemption 2 wisely built most of its side quests so that John Marston could complete them, even after Arthur dies in the campaign. But there are some quests that are meant for Arthur only — specifically, the ones that take place while the gang is hiding out at various camp sites throughout the story. When the location of camp moves, these quests disappear, and they can no longer be played again unless you start an entirely new story playthrough.
Basically, if you're a completionist and you didn't finish everything in Arthur's story, you'll have to start over. And if you thought it was a slog the first time, just wait until you have to do it again.
Dealing with the game's dreadful controls
Red Dead Redemption 2 does a lot of things right. Say what you will about the length of the story, but it's truly moving and does a great job as a prequel story, setting up the events of 2010's Red Dead Redemption. You also have to credit the attention to detail in every little thing the game shows off, living or not. It takes video game realism to another level, and there's a good chance you'll never see another game hit this bar until Rockstar makes some sort of follow-up.
But goodness, the controls of Red Dead 2 are awful.
Whether you're playing as Arthur Morgan or John Marston, it doesn't matter — they both move like they have cinder blocks strapped to their feet. Everyone laughed at The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for bragging about the intelligence of its horses, but we promise, you won't be laughing once your horse in Red Dead Redemption 2 hits a tree for the hundredth time. And don't even get us started on wagons, which are difficult to steer but seem to hit pedestrians with no issue whatsoever.
If Rockstar could make one thing better for Red Dead Redemption 3, it's definitely the controls.
Realizing that no one else in the gang is donating to the money box
All throughout Red Dead Redemption 2, the gang is on the run, trying to scrape enough money together to eventually make an escape and live free of the law. But it doesn't always go to plan. Things go wrong. Heists get foiled. And the gang is forced to move from one makeshift camp to another, with everyone doing their best to gather enough resources and come up with enough cash to survive.
Just kidding. Actually, it's your character that seems to be doing all of the heavy lifting. You're the best shot, so you're always sent on every mission as protection. And not only that, everyone relies on you to stock the camp with food. And find medicine. And purchase enough ammunition for everyone to keep their weapons loaded.
You're also apparently the main source of income. When you stop by the camp's money box and make a deposit, you'll often find that everyone is donating cents at a time, while you're bankrolling the entire operation. Everyone else dallies around. Dutch reads his philosophy books. And you're doing all the work. It'll make you angry every time you open the ledger.
Failing a mission because one of our idiot gang members gets killed
There's nothing worse in a video game than babysitting missions. You might remember having to guard Natalya in GoldenEye 007. It was the absolute worst. It takes those kinds of companions to appreciate the useful ones, like Elizabeth in BioShock Infinite, who throws you ammo, opens tears, and manages to keep herself alive. If Elizabeth can survive without your help, why can't your gang members in Red Dead Redemption 2?
Let's be honest: you have enough to worry about when a gunfight breaks out. You're usually taking cover behind something, trying to shoot down enemies without getting pumped full of lead yourself. The least your fellow bandits can do is hold their own and stay alive long enough for the mission to end. Apparently, that's too much to ask. If you aren't keeping a watchful eye on these so-called killers, acting as a chaperone while also thinning the herd of hostiles, they'll inevitably be shot to death ... and you'll have to start all over.
Please, don't make us babysit our allies in games.
Shooting an enemy over and over and watching them shrug it off
For all of the realism you'll find in Red Dead Redemption 2, there are a couple of things that ask you to suspend disbelief. The game encourages you to eat regularly, for instance, in order to keep your health and stamina up. But you can play the entire game without eating a single thing. You can lose your hat in a heated battle, leaving it on the ground as you walk or ride away. Yet somehow, that hat always seems to find its way back into your horse's satchel. But those are tiny things.
The fact that enemies can take multiple shots and act like they don't feel a thing? That is a pretty huge leap in logic. We get that it's a video game, and simply shooting everyone once would make the gunplay rather boring. But this is a game that leans into make everything else so lifelike. Your horse gets tired if you ride too far, while enemies can soak up bullets like it's no big deal — it's complete nonsense.
Seeing that the end of the campaign isn't actually the end of the game
If you hear about Red Dead Redemption 2 before you play it yourself, the task can seem daunting. Those who've made the journey will tell you about all of the long hours it takes to reach the end. They'll tell you about how slowly the game moves, and how long it takes to do everything. But they'll insist that you press on, because the story gets better. In the later stages, it does! When you finally reach the end, you can breathe a sigh of relief.
Except the end isn't actually the end. Because when Arthur's story wraps up, you're dumped right into the boots of John Marston. If you made it through dozens of hours playing Red Dead 2 as Arthur Morgan, what's a few more hours as John? You'll get to scoop cow dung out of a stall. Serve as a bounty hunter. Build a house. There are so many more fun adventures ahead after Arthur Morgan meets his end. Surely you can put all of that emotion to the side and keep playing, right?
There's a good chance you won't be very happy when you realize that there's a lengthy epilogue after the main campaign. Just try not to break anything.
Running out of Dead Eye consumables
Let's get one thing straight: the shooting in Red Dead Redemption 2 is pretty awful. It's hard to aim properly. Your targeting is easily knocked off every time you get hit by an enemy. And those opposing gunfighters are incredibly squirrelly behind cover. Fortunately, Red Dead 2's Dead Eye system helps level the playing field. It slows down time, giving you an opportunity to hit moving targets more easily and shoot far more accurately. It's a godsend.
But there's a problem. Dead Eye charges slowly. If you run out of the consumables needed to recharge it quickly, you'll be in a really bad spot when a shootout occurs. It always seems to happen at the worst time — you'll be getting flanked both left and right, trying to peek out and gun down enemies who never seem to provide an opening. Because the shooting in the game is so bad, you're bound to lose your life a few times simply trying to land a shot or two. And because you're out of Dead Eye consumables, you'll meet this same fate over and over.
Experience this enough and you're bound to shut your console down in a huff.
Dying repeatedly in the final epilogue mission
The official end of Red Dead Redemption 2's epilogue is immensely satisfying. If you're like most people, you go through Arthur's story absolutely hating Micah. When you learn he's the source of most of the gang's misery, you hate him even more. And long after Arthur's passed, when you get to play as John Marston and deliver sweet justice to Micah, it all feels worth it.
But wow, the fight up the mountain to reach Micah's cabin in the epilogue will make you angrier than a video game should. For some reason, Rockstar thought it would be totally fine to send you up a mountainside with zero cover. Meanwhile, every single one of Micah's men — random goons that shouldn't be that great at handling a gun — suddenly become expert marksmen. They can somehow see you coming around a bend before you ever get there, and once they're able to train their sights on you, there's not a lot you can do to respond.
You'll likely die a whole lot trying to survive the game's final mission. Just remember it's fine to take a break.