Red Dead Redemption Fan Remake Shows What a Next-Gen Port Could Look Like

If Red Dead Redemption were to see a remake, what would it look like nowadays with current-day graphic engines? Some creators got together on YouTube and showed off the results of their imaginations. Many things were done right with the prequel to Red Dead Redemption 2. Notable of which are the experiences of John Marston in his younger days with the Van der Linde gang and the progression of events that eventually led to the beginnings of Red Dead Redemption.

But that’s not to suggest that all of the players would have understood the context behind RDR2, or the game that kickstarted it all. Though Rockstar has ported RDR to PC with the Rockstar Launcher and PlayStation 4 via the PlayStation Now service years ago. The comprehensive nature of RDR2 in its storytelling means that players don’t necessarily have to play through the original to have the full experience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M92mAlq7_As

But that doesn’t stop people who have played the original from imagining what Red Dead Redemption could be like in 2022. Enfant Terrible, a YouTube channel dedicated to the idea of rendering games in HD or Unreal Engine 5 saw that interest and made a conceptual trailer that displayed the landscapes of Red Dead Redemption with modern-day rendering. The video shows John Marston on his steed trodding through the Frontier and the deserts of Nuevo Paraíso, with depictions of lush green forests, an abandoned mining facility, and the engravings of a revolver with John aiming down the barrel.

Though the Red Dead games have been made by Rockstar using their in-house RAGE engine, this is still a nice comparison between the technologies that are available nowadays to the technologies that were utilized to make Red Dead Redemption back in 2010. Which loops back to the original question, what would a Red Dead Redemption Remake look like in 2022?

The answer might be somewhat complicated. If Red Dead Redemption were to be remade using the current day RAGE Engine that’s been refined and optimized for next-gen gaming, players could expect a product that is on par with the graphical fidelity of RDR2. But the problem is whether or not Rockstar would take that approach. This is from looking at the tumultuous release of the GTA Remastered Trilogy in 2021, where the enhanced visuals were done by upscaling the original textures, as opposed to being built from the grounds up using a modern-day engine.

As such, it’s difficult to say if Rockstar would be interested in creating an RDR remake that is not only faithful to the original yet built with a sizable budget in mind that’ll bring it up to the graphical standards of RDR2 and more recent AAA titles. But if Rockstar wants to maintain the reputation that the Red Dead series has built for itself, their hands will likely be more steady this time before they pull the trigger on the remake button.

Red Dead Redemption is available on PC, Xbox Series X|S., PS4, and PS5 via Playstation Now.