From what's been shown of the story so far, Red Dead Redemption 2 will take place over a decade prior to the events of Red Dead Redemption ; where John Marston's story chronicled the imminent "end of the Wild West," Arthur Morgan's story follows the Van der Linde gang at the height of their notoriety, and is the so-called "beginning of the end" for this volatile period in the American West, according to Rockstar. While playing as Morgan, his role in the game will be to guide the gang through their journey across the West and evading the law on their tail, while also helping the gang set up camp across various locations, and aiding them to gather food and other supplies to maintain morale.

That's all until Red Dead Redemption 2 , Rockstar Games' long-awaited and highly-anticipated follow-up to the 2010 Western epic Red Dead Redemption , and a title that is aiming to take the next step when it comes to delivering a truly immersive Open world games reviews-world experience. Coming off the heels of the previous game -- one which many look back on as one of the best games of the last generation -- it's an understatement to say that Red Dead Redemption 2 has been a long time coming, and even more so to point out the unbearably high expectations that have been placed on it.

Red Dead Redemption is simply one of the best games available for the seventh generation consoles. It did receive a zombie-themed expansion pack called Undead Nightmare, which was a fun novelty but didn't resonate the same way the base game did. The Grand Theft Auto San Andreas Bigfoot reference was rather humorous, though. It clearly uses the Grand Theft Auto games as a template but ends up finding its own identity through the setting, characters and storytelling. Red Dead Redemption 2 is one of the most highly anticipated games of 2018, and with the quality of its predecessor, it has big boots to fill.

At the game's beginning, a botched robbery in the town of Blackwater has deprived the gang of most of their funds and made them the top target of the law as a result. From bands of lawmen, to Pinkerton agents, to the growth of big cities like Saint Denis -- the game's stunning, New Orleans-esque urban setting -- Red Dead Redemption 2 puts the Van der Linde gang's backs against the wall, and seeing their story of survival and preserving their way of life makes for a striking contrast to what we saw from the setting of Red Dead Redemption and its depiction of the "end of the West."

With so many different facets to the gameplay and interacting with the environment, the number of systems and mechanics at play in Red Dead Redemption 2 is staggering, and in some instances can even sound a little overwhelming. However, after having hands-on time with the game and first-hand experience with these mechanics, these touches truly feel like meaningful ways to make Red Dead Redemption 2 feel alive and dynamic, for the players that really want to go deeper into it. As Rockstar emphasized to us during the demo, these more survival-driven mechanics aren't meant to feel like "chores" that the player has to do -- they're optional -- but instead to develop that idea that Arthur is truly a part of this world and more than just a vehicle for players to explore what it has to offer.

2014 got a pass because not a lot of original content for PS4 and Xbox One was being released until the final quarter of the year. 2015 is different, because now we’re starting to see development for these new platforms ramp up. There’s no need to see teams waste their time to bring games only a few years old to these new consoles. Already we have DmC: Devil May Cry Definitive Edition, Devil Mary Cry 4: Special Edition, Saints Row IV: Re-Elected, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round, and Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster among others. Now there are some exceptions for games that were only released on one platform (Resident Evil Remake HD), or games you can’t get anymore because they’re so old (Grim Fandago: Remastered). Other than these few exceptions, enough is enough!

This seems nearly impossible seeing as we’re almost at the 10-year anniversary of the game’s announcement, but I feel fairly positive Final Fantasy XV might at least launch in Japan by the time 2015 ends. The fact that we’re getting a gameplay demo in 2015, the large amount of gameplay trailers released in 2014, and the fact that the English voice-overs are already done is enough evidence to suggest we’ll be playing Final Fantasy XV sooner than later.

And yet those moments, as action-packed and exciting as they are, were just a smaller part of the fact that Red Dead Redemption 2 's focus is turned even more toward its finer details. As I entered a small town as Arthur Morgan and went to the nearby general store, I was able to browse the shelves and interact with almost every individual object, item, or knick-knack that caught my eye, and able to examine it in fine detail, even down to reading the labels. At the conclusion of the previously-mentioned train robbery when looking for bonds and money to score, I saw Arthur rummage through cabinets and spending some time looking at the ornate decorations and items strewn about, when just a minute before this, he was hopping across train cars and taking down gunmen left and right. After riding my horse into the next town and stopping to take a break, I could examine my rifle, clean it with gun oil and a cloth, and make sure it was ready for the next engagement ahead.