Red Dead Redemption is finally headed to PS4 and Nintendo Switch, on August 17. No, this isn’t a remake or that long-rumoured remastered version, but rather a port of the original 2010 game, and includes the Undead Nightmare zombie add-on. Rockstar Games’ Western epic was originally launched on the PS3 and Xbox 360, after which it was made compatible to run on newer Xbox consoles via backwards compatibility. Double Eleven Studios — known for working on the Lego Harry Potter games and Minecraft Dungeons — is responsible for this new port, which they’re calling a ‘conversion.’ The studio was founded by ex-Rockstar developers.
In addition to skipping a PC release entirely, the upcoming Red Dead Redemption port is listed for $49.99 (about Rs. 4,140) across both PS4 and Nintendo Switch. There are no visual or quality-of-life upgrades, no multiplayer, nor any mention of 60fps support, which is ironic given the game runs at that framerate on emulators. Understandably, fans are upset, with some theorising that any of the desired new features would be included in a potential remake or a remaster that Rockstar Games might bring later down the line. The high price for a 13-year-old game isn’t helping either and it does not look good next to the price tag on the Xbox store, which only costs $29.99/ Rs. 1,499. The port certainly feels like a cash grab and seeing how poorly Rockstar’s previous remaster Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition fared, fans are rightfully concerned.
On August 17, the beloved Western experience Red Dead Redemption and its horror companion Undead Nightmare arrive together for the first time on the Nintendo Switch and modern PlayStation systems.
Add Red Dead Redemption to your wish list now: https://t.co/kB4TjexkKn pic.twitter.com/lc46gZqqwA
— Rockstar Games (@RockstarGames) August 7, 2023
More recently, renowned dataminer Lance McDonald made a 60fps patch for Bloodborne to run on the PS5, with no upscaling on the footage. With Rockstar Games announcing the Red Dead Redemption port, he stepped in tweeting out: “If a handful of hobbyists can get Red Dead Redemption 2 and Bloodborne running at 60fps on PS5 with no official docs or access, Sony could easily toss a couple of staff in an office and fart the job out the door.” He claims that this is a Sony-related issue, considering Microsoft had no problems patching Dark Souls 3 to run at 60fps on the Xbox Series X. Video game modder ‘illusion’ was also able to run RDR2 at 60fps on a hacked PS5 with firmware 3.00-4.51 — something Rockstar should’ve done a long time ago considering 60fps is the standard for the current-gen consoles.
Red Dead Redemption 2 serves as a prequel to RDR 1, which follows former outlaw John Marston as he journeys across the sprawling American West to locate to last remaining members of the notorious Van der Linde gang. It also introduced the Honor system, wherein NPCs would react kindly if John had performed positive deeds, and harshly if his morality was flawed. In addition to the standard single-player experience, the Red Dead Redemption port will include new supported languages namely Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Korean, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, and Latin American Spanish. Of course, it will be playable on the PS5 as well. This version has a new title: ‘Rockstar Games Presents: Red Dead Redemption,’ which caused many to believe that a remaster was imminent.
Red Dead Redemption arrives on the PS4 and Nintendo Switch on August 17.