We've played this over at camp, at the weekend.
Really mixed impressions.
As a simulation, it's pretty much second to none. Rockstar has a long history with this, throw a ton of people/money on a single project and it shows. Really the level of detail is impressive. If you're a sucker for ol' westerns, this is pretty much a time machine.
As a game? Horrible. Your character controls like Godzilla (
https://streamable.com/oc4jc), just walking around is incredibly slow, shooting is on auto aim, without it feels stiff and clumsy, really zero depth to it and about as basic as it gets. Hard to believe these guys made Max Payne III.
Ride 15 minutes to location/beat the guy/etc, do what you came to do ( for half a minute), ride fifteen minutes back…on and on and on.
Now I usually prefer more realistic worlds with good scale/ambiance ( AC Origins, Witcher, etc)…but imo. this is too much. This game does not respect your time.
(Hope danutz_plus didn't buy this one
)
And the chores! Clean yourself, clean your horse, eat, drink, shave…on and on and on. Everything moves at snails pace, you have to loot bodies, one by one, through long animations. Open shelves one by one. Craft bullets one by one.
Imo, they overdid it and then some.
Kind of odd, feels more like a niche survival ( with no real repercussions) game given enormous budget. If it had some kind of rpg-ish system that ties them together, giving a rewarding sense of progression? But here it's just pointless busywork.
One thing odd: the crime/outlaw system. You'd
think after all the effort they put into simulation aspects, they'd do this right: but it's the same enemies spawn around you, a la GTA. Plus, the system is very wonky: WANTED!…for defending yourself because some prick attacks you for no reason. Or even when someone else gets killed, I kid you not. An Outlaw game where it's annoyin being an Outlaw.
Lighting/visuals? Mixed bag. I love it in outdoors, but looks "too grainy" in certain areas. Weather, especially clouds are great. Facial animations/faces are definitely quite a bit behind.
Story classic Rockstar, but it's ok..definitely better than over the top GTA satire.
Hunting? Whole lot of "what ifs" for very little gain.
Overall very, very slow and atmospheric experience, but too heavy, too clumsy, too unfocused with very weak gameplay .
I'd say go for the story, and ignore everything else like the plague.