Red Dead Redemption 2 release date and everything we know so far | New trailer today?

Tom Hoggins
Updated

Grand Theft Auto creator Rockstar Games' next game will be Red Dead Redemption 2, a follow-up to its critically-acclaimed Wild West epic. According to Rockstar, Red Dead Redemption 2 will be 'an epic tale of life in America's unforgiving heartland' and the game will 'provide the foundation for a brand new online multiplayer experience'. 

"With Red Dead Redemption 2, the team is working hard to push forward our vision for interactive entertainment in a truly living world," said Rockstar founder Sam Houser. " We hope to deliver players an epic experience that builds upon everything we've learned making games."

Red Dead Redemption 2's first trailer appeared on Thursday 20 October 2016, back when the game was scheduled for this Autumn. And, aside from news of its unfortunate delay, eager fans have had little to go on since. Until now.

Rockstar, with its inimitable insouciance, dropped a tweet teasing some fresh information, or possibly a new trailer, at 11am Eastern Time (4pm UK) on Thursday, 28 September.

It recalls the original announcement of Red Dead Redemption 2, which managed to send the gaming  internet into meltdown with a single tweet.

On an otherwise lazy Sunday afternoon last year, Rockstarposted a picture of a worn, black Rockstar logo against a solid red background. That was it, but it was enough to garner over 100,000 retweets and 170,000 likes.

The assumption was that Rockstar is finally ready to talk about the sequel, although some speculated we might see a remaster of the original game first, which followed grizzled cowboy John Marston on a revenge trip through the dying days of the Wild West. Red Dead Redemption has already been made available to Xbox One owners via backwards compatibility.

The following day, Rockstar took what looked a definite step towards a full-blown sequel, tweeting a splendid piece of Wild West artwork featuring the silhouettes of seven (magnificent?) cowboys against a blood-red horizon.

And then they finally showed their hand, tweeting the title, initial release date and announcing the day for the trailer.

It was a 68 second glimpse at the game that showed gorgeous Western vistas and that gang of seven charging across the plains on horseback. But beyond that, there was little official info. Oh Rockstar, you big tease! So while we have to wait for more of an official word on the game, hopefully on Wednesday, rumours and leaks have been swirling around the internet for some time. Here is everything we know so far.

When is Red Dead Redemption 2 released and what platforms is it on?

Red Dead Redemption is scheduled for release on PS4 and Xbox one in Spring 2018. The game was originally supposed to ride into town this autumn, but Rockstar recently delayed the game, saying "extra time is necessary to ensure that we can deliver the best experience possible for our fans."

It will be called Red Dead Redemption 2 after all!

We thought we were using Red Dead Redemption 2 as a short-hand for the follow-up, as strictly speaking this will be the third game in the Red Dead series. The first game, Red Dead Revolver (re-released on PS4), is one of Rockstar’s underappreciated gems, a more linear cowboy shooter that follows Red Harlow on his own revenge mission. It wasn’t until the extraordinary breadth of Red Dead Redemption’s open-world Wild West that the series found widespread acclaim. Most people were expecting a new title, with Red Dead Retribution the favourite, but Rockstar is seemingly keen to keep the legacy going with, simply, Red Dead Redemption 2.

Red Dead Revolver
Red Dead Revolver was the first, more linear, game in Rockstar's Wild West series and has recently been re-released for PS4.

It is likely to be a prequel

Red Dead Redemption took place in the dying days of the Old West, as cities began to expand and cars started to replace horses as the transport of choice. One of the great themes of the game was that John Marston was a man out of time, his way of life being usurped by city slickers.

Red Dead Redemption
Red Dead Redemption was set in the dying days of the Old West, any follow-up is likely to be set further in history.

So it would make sense that the next Red Dead will retreat further into the Western frontier, retaining the terrific cowboy spirit that made Redemption such a hit. It will also give Rockstar the chance to revisit some familiar characters, particularly given the last game’s somewhat scorched Earth policy to its players. With the latest image, there is even some speculation that the new game will feature Marston himself, looking back on his time in a band of outlaws.

For more on what Red Dead Redemption did right in its historical accuracy, journalist and historian Holly Nielsen analysed what the game did right - taking tropes and inspirations from the period and adapting them to create something that feels more like its own world than a flat replica of the Wild West.

It will be set to the East of Red Dead Redemption’s map

Back in April last year, a map apparently showing the landscape of Red Dead Redemption 2 was leaked on Reddit and later reposted by  TechRadar , who claimed to have had the map verified as 'the real deal'. It showed that the new game will have some crossover with Redemption, with the Great Plains and Tall Trees areas (seen in the south-west of the map) making a return, including the town of Blackwater.

Red Dead Redemption 2 map
Red Dead Redemption 2 map

Some intrepid fans combined the two maps to show exactly where the new game will be set in comparison to the first. Also of interest is the big settlement in the south-east –New Bordeaux- which is the fictionalised version of New Orleans in Mafia III, published by 2K Games, another subsidiary of Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two Interactive.

Expect a far deeper multiplayer experience

Following Rockstar’s massive (and continuing) success with GTA Online, the persistent multiplayer component of Grand Theft Auto V, we expect online cowboy action to form a significant part of any Red Dead sequel. The original game has a good multiplayer presence, including the emergent and thoroughly enjoyable free-roam mode. It would not be a surprise to see Rockstar expand on this in a similar way to GTA Online and maintain a regularly updated online Wild West.

Red Dead Redemption multiplayer
Red Dead Redemption's multiplayer free-roam was an underappreciated highlight of the first game.

Where can I pre-order Red Dead Redemption 2 and how much will it cost?

Amazon

Tesco