Essay

In what specific ways is Red Dead Redemption 2 an example of creative communication?

Kyle Newman

Creative Communication – the conveyance of meaning and significance between the game and the player. Everything from opening a door to deciding whether to save the orphanage or the hospital, anything in a game is a form of creative communication. Within this essay I will be covering multiple areas within the game Red Dead Redemption 2 (Rockstar, 2018) and how these areas serve as a form of creative communication. I decided to focus on Red Dead Redemption 2 as the game is focused on achieving immersion and realism, and comparing that realism to reality can expose how the game expresses itself to the player.

Within this essay I will be making use of multiple theories: Donald Norman’s ‘Signifier and Affordances’, Ferdinand De Saussure’s ‘Signifier and Signified’, ‘Meaningful Play’ by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman along with ‘Characters and Representation’ by Robery Mckee. I would like to preface this text by setting a theme; ‘The Truth of the Matter’, wherein I will explore how the game conveys the brutalism of being an outlaw in a realistic yet entertaining way.

The world of Red Dead Redemption 2 is set within 5 fictitious states of the United States – New Hanover, Ambarino, Lemoyne, New Austin and West Elizabeth. Why, however, are they fictitious? The developers of Red Dead Redemption 2, Rockstar, often set their games within a false world that is heavily based on reality – this is to separate it from the real, to distance the thin line that the game would be between game and historical event. It also, however, allows the developers to exaggerate.

The year the game is set in, 1899, is in reality, a much different story to what the game represents. Civilisation was actually much more involved at this point – the beginning of wars involving Winston Churchill and the events that led up to the First World War began at around this time. None of these events occur or are mentioned in the game. Instead, the game is created out of stereotypes and inspirations, with a heavy focus on making these fictitious events seem as real as possible. The way the player interacts with the world supports this – for example, you are able to interact with your horse; pet it, brush it, feed it, before riding off into the distance. You are able to go up to any person, any Non-Player Character (NPC) within the world and talk to them. Interact with them, react to them as they react to you. The world is developed to feel as real as possible, both the characters and the way you interact with it.

Within this world are a cast of characters, the Van der Linde Gang. These characters, including the protagonist, were developed to feel as realistic as possible – to feel like real people. This gang is a rather diverse cast, from the ‘Lone Stranger’ Arthur Morgan to Javier Escuella, a Mexican outlaw who had to flee his country. These two characters alone inherit some stereotypes of the ‘Wild West’ that make up any classic cowboy tale (Wright, 2001, p.15). They signify a classic representation of a cowboy – the classic gang of outlaws that ravages the land. Yes, within Red Dead Redemption 2, the protagonists are the villains of the world where there is no hero. These characters interact, express themselves, and live out their lives like any real man would. They are as real as any man could be in a video game – the question is, why are they not real? There is no evidence of any characters like this in fiction. However, they are all inspired by reality. For example, Arthur Morgan was heavily inspired by Frank James, a member of the pro-confederate guerrillas called the Bushwhackers (Rockstar Games, 2018).

The weapons in the game are based on real weaponry, but functions differently. For example, the ‘Semi-Automatic Shotgun’, which is based on the Browning Auto-5 shotgun (imfdb.org, 2018), is much more brutal than it is in real life. If the player were to take this shotgun and shoot another character in the head, their head would be blown clean off – this is not what the gun would do in real life, as much more powerful weaponry would be required to achieve such a feat. This exaggeration supports the theory of Meaningful Play – the gun, while it would cause a lot of damage to an opponent, the fact that the damage is exaggerated gives the feel of the shot to be much more impactful – much more meaningful. This relates to the theory of Game Feel (Swink, 2009, p.1-6) and how the impact of the shotgun ‘Feels good’ to the player. It has weight, impact, and is extremely noticeable by the player. This type of event, this reaction, is memorable to the players – meaning it is impactful to their experience. Most players of Red Dead Redemption 2 (including myself) will not forget the first time they fired a shotgun at an opponent’s head.

Everything mentioned ties together – the game builds a world; an almost real world, and populates it with characters and life to present to the player. The player themselves becomes a part of this world, and evolves with it as the game progresses. Is the world close to reality? Unlikely – all history is in some way dramatized, and even then, reality is not as entertaining as stories told. However, bringing those stories to life, creating a realistic world that explores the meaning of being an outlaw, the brutality of it, is far more likely to be a success for the developers than creating a historic retelling of 1899.

Bibliography

Imfdb.org. (2018). Red Dead Redemption II - Internet Movie Firearms Database - Guns in Movies, TV and Video Games. [online] Available at: http://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Red_Dead_Redemption_II  (Accessed 16 Nov. 2018].

Mckee R. (1998). Story: Substance, structure, style and the principles of screenwriting. London, Methuen.

Norman, D. (2013). The Design of Everyday Things. Cambridge, Mass., MIT Press

Rockstar Games. (2018). The True West - History that Helped Inspire Red Dead Redemption. Bad Guys Gone Good... and Vice Versa - Part One: Frank James - Rockstar Games. [online] Available at: https://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/article/2511/the-true-west-history-that-helped-inspire-red-dead-redemption-ba.html (Accessed 18 Nov. 2018).

Salen, K. & Zimmerman, E. (2004). Rules of Play Game Design fundamentals. Massechusetts, MIT Press.

Swink, S. (2009) Game feel : a game designer’s guide to virtual sensation. Amsterdam; London : Morgan Kaufmann, 2009. Available at: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,sso&db=cat06378a&AN=nua.9780080921754&site=eds-live&custid=ns195502 (Accessed: 17 November 2018).

Wright, W. (2001) The Wild West : The Mythical Cowboy and Social Theory. London: SAGE Publications Ltd (Core Cultural Icons). Available at: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,sso&db=nlebk&AN=251868&site=eds-live&custid=ns195502  (Accessed: 18 November 2018).

Ludography

Rockstar Games. (2018) Red Dead Redemption 2. Video Game, Rockstar Games, New York.