Undead Nightmare
Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare
The mostly singleplayer DLC for Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption, Undead Nightmare, was released on XBox Live and Playstation Network yesterday. Rather than talk about its plethora of additions to the game or the gameplay found within it - theres plenty of that to be found on the internet - I'll skip right to what we're here for: The artistic value of the game.
If you're familiar with the lay of the land in Red Dead, that is to say you've spent 10's of 100's of hours with in it, you will notice changes immediately. The sun still peaks over rolling hills, and the day time can feel hotter than hell outside, but there's an eerie update to it all that adds to the games overall attention to tension. Fog rolls in, you can hear laughter in the forest, and you're immediately relating to the other town folks who come screaming by on their horses, trying to get the hell out of Dodge.
Like its parent game, Undead Nightmare had its art resources spent where they needed to be. If you go looking for it you will find the odd lack-luster visual only to turn around and get engrossed in believable atmosphere. Rockstar - as they did with their other open world game - knows how to spend their art budget. The smallest of things can look dodgy but the overall package is likely one of the most convincing of its kind. If you go looking for it, you'll find unaligned UV's or muddy materials, but in the grand scheme of things that attention to detail does not break any suspension of disbelief. (And who really notices those things to the degree that we do?) On the flip side of things, there are aspects to the art in this game that were executed in some of the best ways I've personally ever seen in a game: The believable horses and wild life, the characters on their day-to-day (in this case, trying to survive an outbreak), and the exceptionally effective atmosphere of the land itself.
Much like Red Dead Repemption, I found the environment and world in Undead Nightmare to be so convincing that I immediate was in character, as John Marsten. I walk, not run. I don't go guns blazing on everyone, only on those who deserve it. I tip my hat if and when I can (to the ladies, naturally) and overall find myself not doing things too out of character. When you find yourself playing this way, it is generally because of how well the game has connected to you on an emotional level. Emotions that can only come from great character & environment connection.
If you were a fan of Red Dead Redemption, you'll enjoy Undead Nightmare. Rockstar tells the story of a zombie outbreak in early 20th century North American quite well. Like the first one, it has the odd annoyance in gameplay (damn you horse, come to ME when I whistle. Don't run away!) and you'll catch questionable art choices along the way, but the team makes up for everything in its way to convince you of where you, who you are and what is happening to you along the way.
Related Links
- Red Dead Redemption
- Undead Nightmare
- Polycounts Forum, RDR Thread
Replies
I've been playing the horde-like mode with some of my friends, its epic.