Red Dead Redemption 2 - For a Few Redemptions More

Games
1112

My thoughts so far:

Maybe midway or so through Chapter 2? Don’t know. RDR was a favorite, though I had issues with the non-random repeating stranger encounters, and hated the Mexico segment. But I was not really feeling RDR2 through Chapter 1.

At this point the game is really opened up with a nice mix of story missions, and side missions, and the ability to simply roam and explore. This afternoon after work I just went out on my new White Arabian amazing horse I found and broke (I named her Destiny - just seemed appropriate) and did some hunting. BTW - Springfield rifle with a good scope and Deadeye = perfect hides every time. After enjoying exploring the countryside, running into some stranger encounters, running into a couple of O’Driscolls and taking them out, and just enjoying the beautiful scenery, wildlife, and sounds (this game really is amazing with good headphones) I took some meat back to the camp. Shaved and upgraded Dutch’s setup (c’mon, guys, you need to contribute too, I need some upgraded saddle bags!) and then started playing poker with John, Lenny, and the butcher/provisions guy. It really felt like friends playing poker, the chat about things we’d been through, etc.

That probably sounds boring, but I chose to not pursue any “gotta do’s” or stressful missions. And still had 3 hours fly by.

And can’t wait to get back to it. Want to go find the Jack Hall gang treasure. ;)

1113

Arthur can’t whistle for his horse when he’s been running a bunch. He just let’s out this pathetic little tweet. As a fat old guy that gets winded walking up two flights of stairs I appreciate this detail.

1114

My friend told me he found a gold bar in the game worth $500, so FYI there are gold bars apparently randomly hidden on the map.

1115

More than a few.

1116

I found three from a treasure hunt, and another from a random event that was really neat, and then a fifth from… let’s say scrounging. I donated all but one to the camp, which I have upgraded almost fully (for where I am, at least, more stuff was recently added to the upgrade options).

1117

Yeah I found 3 in a treasure hunt, 3 in a cave, one from a mission, and one in…scrounging. Worth it.

1118

Not sure how. I had the mission go back to a checkpoint a number of times because the other guy was killed. If I didn’t shoot a lot, I’d still be playing the mission.

And overall, I think the bounty design works fine. It’s just this particular circumstance where you’re forced into it that bugs me. And RDR had the occasional pardon you could find or be given that I haven’t seen turn up yet.

1119

I certainly don’t have those characters in my camp either.

I think you’re referring to the Provisions guys. I walked around camp a lot yesterday. On my map there’s an axe symbol, but there’s no one there. And then there is the provisions guy, and that’s it. I can’t find where in the interface he needs pelts, and there’s definitely no trapper guy on my map, I spent a long time looking at that map.

When I first started my save game the game said I had abandoned my legendary animal. Which I did. The only thing I could find to do with that bear was to skin in and keep the pelt. I didn’t find any other options other than abandonment at the time, right?

1120

Just stand in that area on the map, you should be in front of a table, that will give you a prompt to buy/sell. Provisions guy teleports over. :)

1121

Maybe it’s hidden behind a camp upgrade, but there’s no way to store or sell that hide in camp. Provisions guy explicitly says he can’t deal with and tells you to find the trapper. So you’re stuck with lugging it around on your horse until you find that trapper.

Unless of course you do a mission which requires you to stow something else on the horse. Then it’ll get unceremoniously dumped on the ground wherever your horse was.

1122

I googled some info on the trapper, and apparently if you happen to drop the pelts in the wild, they will be available to buy back at the Trapper.

1123

You need leatherworking tools (from the ledger) before you can use pelts for upgrades at camp.

1124

And you can’t unlock the ledger until you do a certain mission for one of your camp mates.

1125

Your post inspired me to look this up and find the horse, and I did.

I had a couple of crazy moments trying to capture it, though. First, along the way I found some clues that a legendary bison was in the area. Crap. I decided to hunt it after all, and skip the arabian white for now, figuring I’d come back later. I tracked the bison, and shot him several times with slugs - he took 5 solid hits, two to the head, and ran off into the nearby lake to die. He was floating just past where I could stand, so I tried to swim out and gently guide the carcass back to the shallows, but instead the fucker sank to the bottom and I never got to skin/loot it. Thankfully, a few hours later I got a notice of completion for one of the legendary animals, and in my ledger it shows I looted all 3 of its parts, so I assume the trapper just has them with regards to what materials I’ve provided to craft stuff.

So, since that was a bust, I wandered around the lake for a bit. I heard some wolves and spun around, handy pump action shotgun loaded with slugs at the ready, and here comes this amazing, gorgeous, white horse running up a nearby slope… with two wolves after it. Fuck. I know how hard to calm and catch this horse already is, but having wolves chasing it? Dammit. So I take out the wolves, and thankfully succeed (slugs are the best). I ignore their carcasses and slowly approach the horse and after several very tense minutes, and one moment where it fled a ways and I had to try again (crouching through hip-deep snow the entire time, mind, Arthur was just freazing as I forgot to pack warm clothes), I managed to get on the horse and break it.

I rode it bareback a ways down the trail to my horse, and I get off the Arabian and pull the saddle off my special edition racing horse, and move the upgraded kit/saddlebags/stirrups and the like over to the new horse, whom I name Elsa.

This horse rocks. Now I have to work my bond level up.

But moments ago I saw this cartoon from Control+Alt+Delete (he’s 3 for 3 getting a laugh out of me with his RDR 2 comics) and died.

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1126

So you guys are also noticing the comments by random riders as they pass, and they mention the fine quality steed you are riding?

1127

Ever since I got a bear pelt, I’ve been noticing that white arabian horse roaming the wilds, teasing me that I’m bogged down with a bear pelt.

1128

Not playing it, just browsing.

I think many moons ago when Tom was doing community interviews and i got picked, i mentioned to him how i’d liked to see RDR add things like food and health. I like the “skeuomorphic” survival features added to RDR2. It’s like everything i wanted.

But i said i wasn’t going to buy it b/c of Rockstar’s employment issues, and i still haven’t.

1129

I wonder (earnestly) how the employees that worked so hard on this would feel about that.

1130

I spent some time tracking and hunting the legendary buck and had just knocked it down for the last time when out of nowhere the $300 bounty cavalry hit me like a freight train. It was this enormous wave of red dots that just crashed over me as I started to try and skin the buck.

Of course the buck was gone when I went back, but as you noted they don’t penalize you for missing out on the skinning, which made me very happy. I thought I missed out permanently on it.

1131

I am so glad they implemented this type of “don’t worry, we got you covered” mechanic, must have been a huge PITA during play testing. :)