I am posting this YouTube video in honor of Red Dead Redemption taking the Game of the Year award at this year’s GDC. For those who haven’t played it, I will expound a little on what’s happening in the clip.
It takes place right after John Marsten, the hero of Red Dead, finishes fighting off hordes of banditos to make his way into Mexico. It’s a particularly challenging and intense part of the game that leaves the player buzzing with adrenaline after it’s over. Knowing this, the designers (in a stroke of brilliance) chose to take the vividness to the next level by going the complete opposite direction of all the action they just put you through. As Marsten slowly rides into Mexico for the first time, the sounds of the game slowly fade away and meld into a haunting song by José González titled “Far Away.” It’s one of the more stunning moments I’ve ever experienced in a game.
Watching the clip isn’t exactly the same out of the context of the game, but the video does a good job of conveying a sense of what it was like. Hats off to whoever captured it for having a setting sun in the background and keeping Marsten’s horseriding at an appropriate, cinematic pace.
