Making genre-defining titles is nothing new to Rockstar, but some of the details thrown into Red Dead Redemption 2 are just mind-blowing. Look no further than the nuanced response of NPCs when they botch a task for evidence.
Red Dead Redemption 2 might be an aging game, but it still features some of the best AI in modern gaming. A recent gameplay clip showcases Rockstar's attention to detail perfectly – watch as this NPC fails to properly dispose of a body, recognizes their mistake, and tries again.
Compared to NPCs in a few blockbusters released last year, NPCs in Rockstar's 2018 title look like Albert Einstein. Characters in Red Dead Redemption 2 are bursting with personality, and the robust AI only makes them more real. Whether they're assisting you in a shootout, tagging along on a horse, or chucking a dead body in a swamp, the NPCs of Red Dead Redemption know what they're doing – and they definitely know how to fix their mistakes.
While Red Dead Redemption 2 hasn't seen much new content in the past few months, the same can't be said for Red Dead Online. Rockstar continues to update the popular title, recently separating it entirely from the single-player experience. There's still a lot of solo fun to be had with the multiplayer title, however, as it recently added three new missions geared towards lone wolves.
Despite constant updates to both Red Dead Online and GTA Online, Rockstar is adamant that it will focus on single-player experiences in the future. "The folks at Rockstar Games intended to create a powerful single-player experience a story-driven experience... and then developed in addition, a massive multiplayer opportunity over the past years," said Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick during a recent earnings call. "I think it's a reminder, not that we needed one, that Rockstar Games can do both of those things at the highest possible level of execution."
Red Dead Redemption 3 is probably a very long way off, but it's promising to hear the team hasn't abandoned its single-player roots for the lucrative world of multiplayer. Rockstar is an expert when it comes to building believable worlds, and it'll be exciting to see how its NPCs have evolved over the years.