I feel like a huge reason why Valentine is so loved is because it’s the happiest moment in your play time as well, everyone is still alive and getting along, Micah isn’t around, it’s just a vibe
It’s a perfect representation of how an old western town should look and feel. I like the geography of Strawberry but it’s not too big on gameplay function. Saint Denis is impressive but also at the same time, thematically oppressive.
for me personally the regions represented thhe downhill spiral of the game. Going to happy Valentine to still slightly happy Rhodes, going to colourfull but decaying city to a disgusting coal mine town and dead van horn. The towns get more and more shady or rotten the further you progress and enhance the feeling from the story. Almost like the towns are a physical representation of dutchs mind and the Situation of the gang
you can also not just see, but feel the disparity in standards of living from town to town, with St Denis being advanced but dirty, Blackwater being just as advanced but cleaner and smaller, Annesburg being similar but absolutely miserable, Valentine being happy but less 20th century with only spotty electricity, Strawberry and Rhodes being similar, Van Horn being practically stateless with everyone scrounging to survive, Tumbleweed being rustic and backwards but bustling, Armadillo dying off but hey, at least they have telegraphs
I seriously can’t believe it’s been 5 years since this game came out. I remember counting down the days thinking October 26th would never come and now it been 5 years. Man time flies.
Same! I preordered the game on ps4 and was waiting for that little lock icon to disappear at 12 AM. And then I played and I couldn’t believe that it was happening, it felt like a miracle. I remember that day like it was yesterday
@user-fb9ql8bm2e I doubt it will be that unrealistic. It can be a hardened town of animal trappers and fur traders or a mining town. Like in the movie revenant where a bunch of hunters lived in a snowy mountain settlement. AND, the ambarino odriscoll hideout in chapter 1 was a mining town as well as colter
For gameplay purposes, alcohol is still sold at the General Store, but it actually does cost more than other stores so perhaps that implies it's being sold under the table. Which makes sense because the owner has his own moonshine operation under the store. Also, fun fact, Jack asks John if they're going to visit the saloon when they head to Strawberry to pick up the mail. Jack's obviously new to Strawberry, though, so he wouldn't really know it's a dry town.
Lenny mentions it to Arthur when he was telling Arthur the story of how Micah got arrested. "..and he met a friend and drank some more- and this is a dry town mind you."
Which is odd considering it's a resort town. Banning booze isn't the best way to attract tourists. As another commenter here said, you can buy alcohol at the general store and there's even a bottle of champagne in the hotel room there, so my theory is that they were originally going to have a saloon in Strawberry but cut it for technical/time limitations, and quickly just shoehorned in the dialogue about it being a dry town as a retcon. It would have made more sense to make Rhodes a dry town, as it was notoriously difficult to get a legal drink in many parts of the South for decades both before and after Prohibition with the strong teetotaling Christian culture that dominated down there. Hence the reason why moonshining was so prevalent. Instead stuffy old Rhodes got one of the best saloons in the game while Strawberry gets nothing and becomes a lot more boring without one.
I feel like Annesburg and Van Horn are meant to work in tandem with each other. Annesburg has a gunstore, train station, and a newpaper vendor, while Van Horn has a fence, saloon, and a stable. They aren't very far from one another and they're about the same distance from Beaver Hollow.
I think I saw in a newspaper that annesburg had been the one to get a railroad instead of van horn and that’s why van horn is nearly dead, it could have been a different town but van horn doesn’t have a railroad so it. makes sense. I did not even know that van horn or annesburg even existed at this point in the game mind you, great world building
i’m shocked you have Saint Denis at 5. The first time i went there i was blown away by all the minor details and aesthetic of the town. It’s so rich and full of intrigue. I would argue it’s the most impressive town/cities in all of gaming.
Exactly, it instantly reminded me of when u arrive in anor londo in dark souls, just blows u away that such a place can exist in a game like this, the most standout town in the game by far
He primarily downgrades it because of it's negative effect of a western feeling. There is no doubt that Saint Denis is the most impressive and best town in RD2 followed up by Valentine (he got that one right).
We can all agree that valentine is like the armadillo of rdr1, it's a livestock town and it has everything a cowboy needs, saint denis always gave me an uneasy feeling that im far away from the west and kinda gives me a feeling that soon the wild west will be tamed and become modernized, it has everything you need and its diversity is pretty impressive
I think not having a town in the snowy region was a big miss. It would’ve added a lot more unique flavor and potential reasons to go back into the blizzard. I can’t really think of any other reason to back after the first chapter.
i’ve only returned there for legendary hunts and collectibles like the gravesites/rock carvings/ other things. honestly i hated trekking through it and the snow makes you move so much slower 😭 a town would have been nice there though it would have been cool to see how the npc would be
The fact that you can go from basically Mississippi and Louisiana to Colorado and New Mexico, plus everything in between, is amazing. It's a combo of the settings from Sergio Leone, John Wayne, and Quinin Tarantino western movies, which is insanely cool.
One of the reasons of why i love rdr2 is because it's not the typical cowboy experience. The story is basically a gang of outlaws from the wild west fleeing to the east, so there are forests, mountains, swamps and civilization not the typical open desert country
What I love most about the vibe of Saint Denis is that no matter what, you always feel like an outsider. You can dress up real modern and put all your guns away, but just from the way Arthur or John walks an talks you can tell the difference. Arthur and John having lived mostly self reliant outdoorsman lives have a wider and more shambling movement than the upright and tight movements of the inhabitants. Also the language differences, and dress is vastly different. Most NPCs have a nice casual dressup that Arthur either overshoots or can't quite reach with his main options. You really can't blend in. Which is the point I think. Saint Denis is the complete opposite of everything the gang stands for. And thus you never would be able fit, dress or otherwise
Man Rdr2 will forever be Rockstar's greatest work because of the detail in the world they made compared to other worlds they have made for other games. Also keep up with the vids they are AMAZING!
I guess Emerald Ranch doesn’t count as a town but that was always my favorite place to chill. No gangs, no animals that will randomly attack you, a dog that’s always happy to see you, you can easily get to Valentine if you need things, and a train station if you wanted to go anywhere else. If I had control over John Marston, I would have bought that new house. Van Horn was the best. You could do whatever you wanted and not get arrested. Only problem was, you punch one idiot and the whole town comes after you.
@yummy_maplesyrup8887 Best way to avoid the Murfrees would be to camp southwest of Emerald towards Lemoyne and towards the Chapter 2 camp. I know the Murfrees only appear in a special encounter when camping in their region for the first time but even after that encounter I still feel uneasy camping out there. The entire eastern side of the map just feels sketchy for setting up a mini-camp for me
I love this game. Im actually doing the 100% stuff atm. I was obsessed with rdr1, and my daughter would sit with me to watch me riding the horses and finding them in the wild. When she got old enough, she would play it too just to ride the horses. When rdr2 came out, she had passed away a month or so beforehand. She had been looking forward to it so much. For months after the release i just couldn't bring myself to play it knowing how excited she was. But i did in February 2019 and now its a comfort thing, not just an amazing work. But it does still make me sad that she won't get to see all the gorgeous designs and horses. Pretty sure she would have loved the field of flowers in Big Valley. Great video also
That’s heartbreaking I’m so sorry for your loss 💔💔💔 regardless on if you believe in God or not, I do, and I believe that your daughter is looking down at you smiling patiently and excitedly waiting for the day when she will get to show you all of the beautiful horses and flower fields of heaven ❤️ May she rest in peace and may you find comfort and solace until you two meet again. ❤️❤️❤️
@@bayleemaclaren you won't believe it. I got to 98%, then loaded a 37% save to see if Arthur looked like a gremlin when he wins poker too. It autosaved over my 98% save 🤦♀️ I was gutted.
There's actually an in game explanation as to why Strawberry doesn't have a saloon. In the mission 'A quiet time' Lenny mentions that it's supposed to be a dry town, which kinda also explains why the general store owner has his side business hidden in the cellar.
Wish we got to experience Limpany before it burned, and maybe even Colter while there was life there, but the former left more to be desired. Looked so darn quaint of a town.
5 years later without them even adding any kind of resolution or performance patch for new consoles, this game still feels like it could have released yesterday It holds up between gameplay and narrative just fine and most especially it holds up visually, newer games may have technically surpassed it with resolution and fidelity in certain areas, but no matter how many of them that I have played, some of which are jaw-droppingly gorgeous, every time I jump back into RDR2 anytime I stop to move the camera around I realize and remember that this is the most beautiful game I've ever played Anyway, I really like this video, your gameplay footage matches what you're talking about and you're well spoken. I would put some time stamps in the description or chapter selection for something like a ranking video in the future I can't say I agree with your ranking, for me armadillo wouldn't even make my top 10 in this game because it was so incredibly disappointing to see that there's nothing in it. That entire area of the map feels like such a tease and such a waste, I have a feeling it's really only there for online. At the same time perhaps it's very authentic to the real wild West in that there's really nothing there other than a lot of rocks and lizards But this is your ranking my friend and I appreciate you sharing
5 play throughs, been playing since its release and this game still doesn’t get old for me. The game performs like a dream even on my old ps4 hardware. Best game I’ve ever played 🐐
Me neither! Still remember waking up early the day it released to play it b4 work. No other game has given me the emotional rollercoaster this one has.
I play DnD with my friends, and I’ve been DMing for a little while. This makes me think about how to properly make diversity of themes in towns and villages in games. I loved RDR2, but I never thought about these two things intersecting until now
Riding around valentine after leaving horseshoe overlook in my very first play through gave me the greatest feeling of wonder, excitement, nostalgia, and awe I’ve ever had while playing a game.
For me 1. Saint Denis (absolutely beautiful) 2. Rhodes (leymone is my favourite area, looks amazing, especially the swamps which are spooky) 3. Blackwater 4. Van horn 5. Although its not a city i love roanoke ridge, its creepy
Agree with Rhodes completely, however Saint Denis is only partly beautiful. Some very nice streets and houses but then most of it is a muddy industrial shithole.
Saint Denis was always my favourite, in the earlier part of the story it felt like an escape from the troubles at camp. The vibe is also something I love
I have definitely felt at times that the saint denis area of the game can feel very “un-western” but Django unchained is one of my favorite westerns and it prominently features the southern U.S. which I think is something rockstar considered when making this game.
I love how in-depth you went with your love for these towns. You really nailed the vibe and reasons as to why the best towns are so different from each other. Subscribed.
I was surprised to see Tumbleweed that high on the list, but Rhodes and Valentine are perfectly placed. Absolutely loved both of those places playing this game
I love how there’s pretty much every type of town you can think of from the time period. It shows that the game isn’t just about the Wild West but about the time period as a whole. My ranking (from worst to best) 10. Armadillo (a ghost town ravaged by plague) 9. Lagras (a bayou fishing village) 8. Van Horn (a lawless town run on vigilante justice) 7. Annesburg (an Appalachian mining company town) 6. Blackwater (a big city with a western feel to it) 5. Tumbleweed (a desert town deep in the wild west) 4. Strawberry (a western resort town) 3. Saint Denis (a big city that ushers in the future) 2. Valentine (a livestock town) 1. Rhodes (a southern town trapped between the Civil War and reconstruction)
Saint Denis (home base and Big Towm) Blackwater (second base have a lot to offer) Rhodes (red like but mostly one street) Valentine (shopping perfect vibes) Strawberry (hilly) Armadelio (county) TumbTumlioeed (desert) Annesburg (mines) Van Horn (by the river) Colter (just snowy)
The problem with Van Horn is you can't just pick a fight, because it's like poking a wasp nest. Everyone will pull out their guns and start shooting at you. Personally, I would have placed Strawberry higher and it probably has to do with what you said about Rhodes. It reminds me of home. Although it's meant to be a Rocky Mountain town, it shares a lot of similarities with Appalachian Mountain towns, so it feels very familiar with the terrain and plants and general architecture of what a mountain town would look like at the turn of the century.
Valentine is actually how i would create a small western village if they would ask me to do it. It is just simply perfect. Armadillo would be actually my number 2 if it wouldnt have cholera, and every building would be open and working.
You make some compelling points. Strawberry is probably the one I think back most positively on, but watching this, I'm realizing it's also probably the one I've spent the least time in.
I really love Valentine, it’s my number 1 town as well. It’s just gives off classic Western stand-off vibes. Very similar to the towns in Unforgiven and The Magnificent Seven(with Denzel), which are both great movies. I think every town in the game is unique in its own way. Greatest game of all time!
My favourite is Rhodes. I usually rank the towns just by the biom they're in. I prefer it because you can ride the best in the plains. No mountains or anything you have to avoid in order to get somewhere else
Man I wish they focused on story mode like they do online. They should add more bounties, guns, quests, landmarks, secrets, places to explore etc. I’m a big story mode fan and have 100% the game it sucks there’s not more stuff to do😢
The reason strawberry doesn’t have a lounge is because it’s a dry town. The mission “A quiet time” mentions it, and the shopkeeper is a moonshiner because he can’t buy and sell normal liquor.
You'll go places with this channel if you keep it up like that! One of the nicest videos about my favorite game I've seen. You speak intelligently and from the heart + you have a great voice to listen to, which I think is important to be successful on TH-cam. I'll check out more of your videos in the next days
i may not agree with this list and think its kinda wrong but the way he backs up his reason with cool facts and reason its like a story hes telling us just about how valentine and van horn are better then saint denis
Saint Denis has to be my top pick. Admittedly, I never finsihed the game, or got anywhere near the end. But I did explore most of the map. Saint Denis has such a different vibe to the rest of the towns, which are mostly just small settlements and towns with a few shops. Cozy in their own right, and certainly fitting for a period piece game, but it just got a little old after awhile.
Butchers creek should be on this list low on the list but I find it Wierd that in game it’s not got the black circle meaning it’s a town if lagras can have it so can butchers creek
I agree. I also wish that by the epilogue perhaps colter got reestablished somewhat as a small settlement like tumbleweed or van horn. Ambarino needs something
Spittin dude! I agree with nearly everything you say. I think all tumbleweed needed was more gunslingers or del lobos that you can antagonize, when im in Valentine and see a dude with a holster i can always duel them, tumbleweed it seems I can never find one. Strawberry is overrated so much. The hotel has so much potential to be a saloon and I find it odd they didn't take the chance to do so.
I guess the main or main reasons Strawberry does not have a saloon is most likely because it's meant to be a "dry" town, an all salons, even the Rodhe's Parlour House, only sell alcoholic drinks to the players - and that's one of the main themes of western saloons: booze and gambling. Second, it's like a fake puritan town trying to mimic the advances of industrialized civ but in a west mountain ressort which is nothing but a wannabe, it fails completely in its objectives. It's like one of the first towns built with tourism in mind in first place (like the way Vegas was built from the scratch). I guess even St. Denis makes a better role as what is intended to represent than Strawberry. Maybe tha's also why strawberry is for me a place to pass by and forget, even if it adds substance and diversity to the game - but anyway I also wait strawberry. the town could at least have a tea saloon where we could eat; a touristic place without the good ole regional food is for me a big flawd in Strawberry's built by Rockstar. You do there what you have to do, including exploring the mysteries, and never come back again. Mentioning explorer, the wilderness around and north of the town is simply astonishing, remarkable and the most enjoyable to explore by yourself with your horse. It's like one of the last reducts of nature untouched by human hand. Nice video. Cheers all.
I remember being sad I was too young to experience gaming staples like halo, mass effect, half life, portal and such. Well I wasn't too young for rdr 2 and I couldn't be happier. This game will be remembered for decades.
I love all the towns in the game… they all serve a niche purpose… but, no matter what, or who, or whatever I’m trying to get at with this… Strawberry is my absolute favorite! In story mode after completing the main story, I usually treat the game as a hunting simulator, I go and hunt around Big Valley and Tall Trees, I fish in every region… and in online I pretty much play the trader role almost exclusively when I’m not playing with my friends and family… so, I’m always in and around Strawberry. Love the ruggedness, the alpine vibes, the hunting is good, and Big Valley has some of the most stunningly beautiful camp locations in the whole map! I just love Strawberry! Valentine is my closest 2nd and Tumbleweed the 3rd. I rarely venture south towards Lemoyne, but I still love going there every now and then for some catfish and gator hunting!
Finally someone who understands Van Horn!!!!! Its my favourite town in the game because i fucking love the delapitated and bleak feel it has and its next to one of my all time favourite areas in gaming ever, AKA Roanoke Ridge. Sometimes the eery forest ambiance even carries over to visiting the town itself
You ever been to foggy, thick, dense Saint Denis? The vibe is IMMACULATE with the dense morning fog clumping against the ground as you walk through the civilization in the swamp.
Kudos from Dublin, Ireland man! Great video. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Haven't cranked up RDR2 in a while so you've inspired me to lassoo some people and throw them off clifftops! 😍😂
It really depends on what you consider town I feel like you could’ve included wapiti, thieves landing, colter, and macfarlanes ranch as towns that could’ve had more to do in them seeing as how they are technically settlements that you can fast travel to.
large private land like Macfarland ranch would set a precedent of having to include things like caliga hall or pronghorn ranch which just aren’t in the same ballpark as the towns
@@aspect359 It depends on how Rockstar narrates RDR3 story. If they narrate it really well for example the blackwater massacre and how Dutch founded the group and the game that settles in a western style than yes it could beat it but if Rockstar fails the story mode with other mix ups then rdr2 story mode will be the best.
@@hansviernes5902I don’t think RDR3 will be made sadly, even if it was a thing what would the story be? Who would be the main character? And how would they die? They’re gonna have to die, it’s the Red Dead Redemption series. Besides Rockstar also set the series at the end of the wild west, so it can’t really be about Jack.
I come to your channel every couple days before I hop on RDR2 to get my fill of the amazing world Rockstar created for us. Thanks for you awesome RDR content man. Rock on 🤘🏻
Personally, my favorite town is Rhodes. I just like the wild west feel that it has. In my opinion, it has more of that wild west feel than any other town in the game. The one town that I absolutely hate is by far St Denis. But that may be partially due to the fact that I grew up in a town of less than 200 people. Either way, I can't stand being forced to go there. I can't say anything one way or another for the towns in New Austin, because I can no longer go to the epilogue. I can't handle Arthur's death. I just can't. So I no longer go past chapter 4, or at the *_tiniest_* possibility, chapter 5. But that's extremely rare. Truth be told, I like to keep it in chapter 2. Maybe chapter 3.
@@brendan5235 Something I've gotten a kick out of is that here where I live there's a Blackwater, Rhodes, _and_ a Valentine all within riding distance of each other. I know the people from Rockstar didn't come here looking for inspiration of any kind. But it's just kinda funny in my opinion. Maybe little creepy too.
@@leolimitedition I have finished the story. Many times. But now I play it *HOW I WANT.* If you don't like my choice of play style, I don't care. I play it how I want and how I enjoy. I could throw your comment back at you and tell you to check off a few things and wait on the damn story. I will do whatever the hell I want in my games. If you don't like it, that's your problem not mine. You're probably asking yourself what I do while staying in chapter 2. Well I complete many of the challenges, collect legendary animals and fish, and get the white Arabian. I collect rare/unique items like the ammolite, fluorite, shrunken head, and various masks. I check off landmarks. I try to get everything I can into my compendium. I plan for future stranger missions, such as Algernon's first request. I pick up hidden treasures around the game. I collect the hides needed for the _Legend Of The East_ satchel and camp upgrades. I get hides the trapper needs. I collect gold bars. Currently I have 22 gold bars. I prefer to sit on bars unless I reach a point that I'm desperate for money. There are dozens of other things I do, but I figure this is a good indicator. Also, what gives you the right to dictate how someone chooses to play a video game anyway miss Karen?
@@Jennifer-jt9cb but what’s really happening is you’re just going through the stages of grief, denial anger etc, but soon, acceptance. you disgrace this beautiful game by not playing it how it’s intended, you make Arthur suffer by withdrawing him from his fate, ever think about that? Legend of the east? I don’t think so, more like legend of the chapter 2 hermit
As someone who doesn’t really play video games anymore, I gotta say red dead 1 and especially 2 will forever be my favorite games that I can come back to. And with red dead 3 just confirmed I can’t wait to see what they make, even if it’s another 10 years away 😭.
my list would have to be 10. saint denis, would be 1 if there was more saloons. (my opinion) 9. annesburg, shitty, depressing town with a gun store where you can buy a gun to shoot yourself. 8.lagras, you said everything 7. armadillo, it doesnt have much to offer. 6. strawberry, no buisnesses 5. rhodes, cool place where you feel scary 4. tumbleweed, i dont stop by much, but when i do i will enjoy myself 3. Van horn, i LOVE this town, the feeling like if you talk youre dead. 2. Valentine, classic western town, easily the best place to hang out. 1. blackwater, my fave out of all, the ongoing construction and modernization, while people drink themselves to death, and gamble themselves away. overall fancy, but also rugged town
i love playing this game for my grandma because shes a huge fan of westerns and when i showed her rhodes she started telling me about how it reminded her of her childhood and the times she would go to louisiana. now everytime i play i think about the beauty of that dirt
I like your ranking, but I would change it a bit. Mine would go: 10: Lagras 9: Annesburg 8: Armadillo 7: Tumbleweed 6: Van Horn 5: Strawberry 4: Rhodes 3: Valentine 2: Saint Denis 1: Blackwater Other non-towns ranking: (Can't forget these dudes) 1: Grey and Braithwaith Estates 2: Thieves Landing (rdr2 Online) 3: Butcher's Creek 4: Wapiti Reservation 5: Cotler 6: Lakay
I'm currently at Beaver's Hollow in the game and I always find myself wanting to do any missions in the Western part of the map. Having to constantly got to Saint Dennis for specific shops is so grinding. I've just gone back to Valentine after a couple of Rains Falls missions and it is so refreshing. Lime you said, I wish Strawberry had at least a saloon. I would never leave that corner of the map if there was more reason to stay there.
I'm a sucker for Lagras coz I love that goat that'll attack you out of nowhere, the fishing is fun there(due to the worry about crocs)plus the lady that runs the tackle shop is fabulously friendly. Valentine is my fave followed by van horn.
Rhodes is my personal favorite for asthetics, i just love that french colonial vibe. it just needs a god-damn poker table. I hate blackjack with a passion haha. Also where do all the rich folks in that fancy ass saloon even live?? Also good on you to notice Annesburg and Strawberry are beautiful but having literally nothing to do. The last thing i want to add is that Tumbleweed's placing is genius. It gives you a reason to go to the far end of the map. I went to check on it in the prologue since i had a feeling i'd be populated and damn, it did not disappoint.
My all-time favorite RDR2 event is Chapter 2 when the ladies are happily singing a vulgar song as they ride into town in a carriage with their uncles. The town of Valentine is a good town with its events, small but with most of what you need, but I like the town of Saint Denis, where different cultures are mixed and greet each other respectfully and politely back!
My list: 1. Saint Denis (Despite it not being that close to the wild west atmposphere to me it remains one of the most complete and aestheticly pleasing cities out of all video games I've played.) 2. Valentine (combined with a chapter where you make really good memories Valentine is rightly considered one of the best and if not the best town in the game having intensive wild west elements.) 3. Blackwater (I was really curious to find out what Blackwater looked like because I hadn't played RDR. From the second I got into the town I was amazed. Beautiful, has everything activity-service wise and the fact that it has a port is something I really liked. I also believe it is the most accurate city of a time where the west wanted to ''de-westify.'') 4. Armadillo (Despite being believed that the city is kind of empty and odd it remains the most ''wild west city'' in the game. The idea of a town where crimes are technically allowed without law intervention in a game where you face trouble with the law and the bounty hunters all the time is pretty good too.) 5. Rhodes (Nice design with mostly all the services you'll need but nothing else that's really special about it.) 6. Strawberry (The idea of a mountain city was pretty interesting and honestly it is quite good. My only problem is that it is too condensed. Too many things in a small space. If it was the size of Rhodes or even Valentine It might had been on the top 3.) 7. Van Horn (A little bit blunt and soulless in a way. However it got it's character with the port n' stuff and also being able to massacre the whole town is the city's very trademark.) 8. Annesburg (It has to be the town that I've wandered around in the less. Never really attracted me. It seemed kind of irrelevant. Has nice surroundings though. The mining rigs in combination with the wilderness make a good environment.) 9. Tumbleweed (It has the wild west elements but it's empty. Literally almost nothing to do there other than wander around to enjoy the game's wilderness design.) 10. Lagras (Kind of the same thing with tumbleweed except in this ''town'' you actually can't do anything. The only reason why it's not 11th is due to the fact that it's the only place where bait and lure can be bought.) 11. Colter (Didn't even know it was considered a town until I searched it up. Only serves the purpose of the first chapter, you can't do anything after it in this ''town''.)
Valantine is my favourite because of the vibe. It just feels like where arthur belongs, i do love the parcour in blackwater, but i only did that as arthur, and somehow, i survived for a bit. I think strawberry is chill, but there isn't enough to do. Van horn is fun. I've actually never been to tumbleweed even though im on my 2nd playthrough, but it seems nice. Edit: rhodes isn't bad but it shouldn't be in no. 2
Valentine is one of those “first” towns that feels surreal visiting and you’ll always remember the first time. Another example of this for me personally is my first time visiting Riverwood in Skyrim
rdr2 made me realize how much better and more alive the world feels compared to gta 5 simply because life is spread out more. gta 5's biggest mistake was having one big city at the bottom of the map and the rest just be countryside. theres rarely ay encouragement to even explore up there. in rdr2 i was happy to go wherever cause i knew wherever i went, i would find a town. here is to hoping its more spread out in gta 6.
One purpose of Lagras was to highlight the deep contrast in the quality of life for Black americans at the time. Lagras was an impovrished town with no infrastructure. An "out-skirts" town where poor blacks were forced to live, due to no economic opportunities. It was very well portrayed by RockStar.
I’m so glad that I’m not the only one who LOVES Tumbleweed, I always found it fascinating and creepy in rdr1 so seeing it full of life in rdr2 was such a treat
My favorites: 1. Blackwater 2. Valentine 3. Strawberry 4. MacFarlane Ranch 5. Rhodes Either beautiful cities or beautiful locations. I love these. Red Dead Redemption is the most beautiful game ever.
My favorite is Valentine, I remember that very first time I made that left turn onto the main street. I was blown away, love at first sight. Next is Rhodes, same kinda 'western' vibe as Valentine but the red dust just makes it extra. It also has all the shops. My third favorite is Strawberry, I love the surroundings and the look, but it could've really done with a saloon and gunshop.
This video is beautiful, i’ve never seen your channel but it’s great! Also, I’m Italian so you have a fan from another country😁… All jokes aside this video is perfect and you explained yourself very well!❤
I feel like a huge reason why Valentine is so loved is because it’s the happiest moment in your play time as well, everyone is still alive and getting along, Micah isn’t around, it’s just a vibe
It’s a perfect representation of how an old western town should look and feel. I like the geography of Strawberry but it’s not too big on gameplay function. Saint Denis is impressive but also at the same time, thematically oppressive.
No i actually liked it because the mountains were a compliment in the background of the town. Plus the sheep farm was great too
@@KD400_ you must be fun at parties.
@@BirdGang6 I am. just gave my opinion no need to get mad here
I never played story but I love valentine because of the aesthetic of it
for me personally the regions represented thhe downhill spiral of the game. Going to happy Valentine to still slightly happy Rhodes, going to colourfull but decaying city to a disgusting coal mine town and dead van horn. The towns get more and more shady or rotten the further you progress and enhance the feeling from the story. Almost like the towns are a physical representation of dutchs mind and the Situation of the gang
This pretty much sums it up.
Ya
you can also not just see, but feel the disparity in standards of living from town to town, with St Denis being advanced but dirty, Blackwater being just as advanced but cleaner and smaller, Annesburg being similar but absolutely miserable, Valentine being happy but less 20th century with only spotty electricity, Strawberry and Rhodes being similar, Van Horn being practically stateless with everyone scrounging to survive, Tumbleweed being rustic and backwards but bustling, Armadillo dying off but hey, at least they have telegraphs
Wow I never looked at it that way. Nice job
Also Annesburg is my least favorite town in the game.
@@destroyazoid2060 yea i wish they had some bounty hunting quests or something like that or some random events to make it more intriguing to be there
I seriously can’t believe it’s been 5 years since this game came out. I remember counting down the days thinking October 26th would never come and now it been 5 years. Man time flies.
Fr
same
To put it into perspective you are 5 year more closer to death.
Same! I preordered the game on ps4 and was waiting for that little lock icon to disappear at 12 AM. And then I played and I couldn’t believe that it was happening, it felt like a miracle. I remember that day like it was yesterday
And Take Two have now confirmed a RDR3 is on the cards 😊
It’s a shame they never did any mountain town in ambarino
Totally agree !
🤤🤤🤤🤤
Mountains are very inhospitable terrain, it would be cool but unrealistic :(
@user-fb9ql8bm2e I doubt it will be that unrealistic. It can be a hardened town of animal trappers and fur traders or a mining town. Like in the movie revenant where a bunch of hunters lived in a snowy mountain settlement. AND, the ambarino odriscoll hideout in chapter 1 was a mining town as well as colter
@@user-fb9ql8bm2e how would it be unrealistic. There were a lot of snowy, mountainous towns in the old west
Lore wise Strawberry doesn't have a saloon because it is a dry town, which is mentioned in the game at some point.
For gameplay purposes, alcohol is still sold at the General Store, but it actually does cost more than other stores so perhaps that implies it's being sold under the table. Which makes sense because the owner has his own moonshine operation under the store. Also, fun fact, Jack asks John if they're going to visit the saloon when they head to Strawberry to pick up the mail. Jack's obviously new to Strawberry, though, so he wouldn't really know it's a dry town.
Lenny mentions it to Arthur when he was telling Arthur the story of how Micah got arrested. "..and he met a friend and drank some more- and this is a dry town mind you."
Strawberry is my favorite
Which is odd considering it's a resort town. Banning booze isn't the best way to attract tourists. As another commenter here said, you can buy alcohol at the general store and there's even a bottle of champagne in the hotel room there, so my theory is that they were originally going to have a saloon in Strawberry but cut it for technical/time limitations, and quickly just shoehorned in the dialogue about it being a dry town as a retcon.
It would have made more sense to make Rhodes a dry town, as it was notoriously difficult to get a legal drink in many parts of the South for decades both before and after Prohibition with the strong teetotaling Christian culture that dominated down there. Hence the reason why moonshining was so prevalent. Instead stuffy old Rhodes got one of the best saloons in the game while Strawberry gets nothing and becomes a lot more boring without one.
Could still have a saloon-like building with food, poker or blackjack and a barber or something.
I feel like Annesburg and Van Horn are meant to work in tandem with each other. Annesburg has a gunstore, train station, and a newpaper vendor, while Van Horn has a fence, saloon, and a stable. They aren't very far from one another and they're about the same distance from Beaver Hollow.
That’s true
They should of just combined them
but you can commit war crimes in van horn without lawmen swarming you
but the people in van horn with revolvers will swarm you
@@leoduk302yeah they all just lay on the floor once im done with them for some reason 😊😊😊
I think I saw in a newspaper that annesburg had been the one to get a railroad instead of van horn and that’s why van horn is nearly dead, it could have been a different town but van horn doesn’t have a railroad so it. makes sense. I did not even know that van horn or annesburg even existed at this point in the game mind you, great world building
i’m shocked you have Saint Denis at 5. The first time i went there i was blown away by all the minor details and aesthetic of the town. It’s so rich and full of intrigue. I would argue it’s the most impressive town/cities in all of gaming.
Exactly, it instantly reminded me of when u arrive in anor londo in dark souls, just blows u away that such a place can exist in a game like this, the most standout town in the game by far
By not being spoiled by the game, it just blows you away that you are in a civil, big city. I felt like I was in the wrong place.
I would only rank it down because it’s so easy to be swarmed by police for doing nothing
He primarily downgrades it because of it's negative effect of a western feeling. There is no doubt that Saint Denis is the most impressive and best town in RD2 followed up by Valentine (he got that one right).
Agreed!
We can all agree that valentine is like the armadillo of rdr1, it's a livestock town and it has everything a cowboy needs, saint denis always gave me an uneasy feeling that im far away from the west and kinda gives me a feeling that soon the wild west will be tamed and become modernized, it has everything you need and its diversity is pretty impressive
I love rdr2 a lot but man rdr1 has way more iconic and fun towns to explore imo. Armadillo was like sanctuary borderlands 2 to me.
I kinda hate Valentine. Also of course a bunch of chaos massmurderer every single cop there a lot of times.
@@smoovkillaarmadillo in rdr1 is the goat imo. Looks just like the towns in the old spaghetti westerns
That’s true it’s the most cowboy vibe. But I’ll love the diversity of crowded cities to little mountain towns. And everything in between
Van Horn is the Thieves Landing of RDR2
I think not having a town in the snowy region was a big miss. It would’ve added a lot more unique flavor and potential reasons to go back into the blizzard. I can’t really think of any other reason to back after the first chapter.
There are many reasons to return there!
i’ve only returned there for legendary hunts and collectibles like the gravesites/rock carvings/ other things. honestly i hated trekking through it and the snow makes you move so much slower 😭 a town would have been nice there though it would have been cool to see how the npc would be
*The legendary bison, the white Arabian horse, the legendary fish*: are we a joke to you?
@@higharchbishopofteatasting6217 The clothes you get from the legendary bison are the best out of all the legendary animals
True, I just go there for Falco Hernandez and thats it
edit: Flaco
The fact that you can go from basically Mississippi and Louisiana to Colorado and New Mexico, plus everything in between, is amazing. It's a combo of the settings from Sergio Leone, John Wayne, and Quinin Tarantino western movies, which is insanely cool.
The fact you can go to all of them on horseback in less than a day is pretty impressive too.
I think you mean John Ford
John Wayne wasn’t a director
One of the reasons of why i love rdr2 is because it's not the typical cowboy experience. The story is basically a gang of outlaws from the wild west fleeing to the east, so there are forests, mountains, swamps and civilization not the typical open desert country
What I love most about the vibe of Saint Denis is that no matter what, you always feel like an outsider. You can dress up real modern and put all your guns away, but just from the way Arthur or John walks an talks you can tell the difference. Arthur and John having lived mostly self reliant outdoorsman lives have a wider and more shambling movement than the upright and tight movements of the inhabitants. Also the language differences, and dress is vastly different. Most NPCs have a nice casual dressup that Arthur either overshoots or can't quite reach with his main options. You really can't blend in. Which is the point I think. Saint Denis is the complete opposite of everything the gang stands for. And thus you never would be able fit, dress or otherwise
Man Rdr2 will forever be Rockstar's greatest work because of the detail in the world they made compared to other worlds they have made for other games. Also keep up with the vids they are AMAZING!
Its got the best vibes of all their games, in my opinion
@@ryanmccolloch4734Yeah even if GTA 6 comes out. RDR2 will still the top 1 on my list. This game will be legendary BOAH
They could still top it, but they'll prob be more concerned with making a monetizable online game.
I agree, GTA 5 was amazing but RDR 2 was all time great. GTA 6 had better be unbelievable if it wants to compete with RDR2.
To top rdr2 they'd have to make rdr3
I guess Emerald Ranch doesn’t count as a town but that was always my favorite place to chill. No gangs, no animals that will randomly attack you, a dog that’s always happy to see you, you can easily get to Valentine if you need things, and a train station if you wanted to go anywhere else. If I had control over John Marston, I would have bought that new house.
Van Horn was the best. You could do whatever you wanted and not get arrested. Only problem was, you punch one idiot and the whole town comes after you.
agreed with you
It should have counted considering it’s got more going on in it vs Lagrass.
It's a Ranch tho, definitely one of if not the best ranch
I got jumped by murfrees just next to emerald while setting up my camp. There is also the word and creepy lore with the daughter and the owner
@yummy_maplesyrup8887 Best way to avoid the Murfrees would be to camp southwest of Emerald towards Lemoyne and towards the Chapter 2 camp. I know the Murfrees only appear in a special encounter when camping in their region for the first time but even after that encounter I still feel uneasy camping out there. The entire eastern side of the map just feels sketchy for setting up a mini-camp for me
I love this game. Im actually doing the 100% stuff atm. I was obsessed with rdr1, and my daughter would sit with me to watch me riding the horses and finding them in the wild. When she got old enough, she would play it too just to ride the horses. When rdr2 came out, she had passed away a month or so beforehand. She had been looking forward to it so much. For months after the release i just couldn't bring myself to play it knowing how excited she was. But i did in February 2019 and now its a comfort thing, not just an amazing work. But it does still make me sad that she won't get to see all the gorgeous designs and horses. Pretty sure she would have loved the field of flowers in Big Valley. Great video also
That’s heartbreaking I’m so sorry for your loss 💔💔💔 regardless on if you believe in God or not, I do, and I believe that your daughter is looking down at you smiling patiently and excitedly waiting for the day when she will get to show you all of the beautiful horses and flower fields of heaven ❤️
May she rest in peace and may you find comfort and solace until you two meet again. ❤️❤️❤️
@@cash7669 thank you. That's really kind of you. I do believe that she's waiting for me. She's with her aunt and Pop ❤
@@bekleedeegood luck on your 100% run lol, I’m at 99.1% and have been playing since 2019😂 this game is addictive
My condolences,if u don't mind me asking,how did she pass away?
@@bayleemaclaren you won't believe it. I got to 98%, then loaded a 37% save to see if Arthur looked like a gremlin when he wins poker too. It autosaved over my 98% save 🤦♀️ I was gutted.
There's actually an in game explanation as to why Strawberry doesn't have a saloon. In the mission 'A quiet time' Lenny mentions that it's supposed to be a dry town, which kinda also explains why the general store owner has his side business hidden in the cellar.
And it explains why alcohol is more expensive in that store than the others
What a detailed game, imagine gta 6
What does it mean dry town?
@@kingnevermore25 Bruh..... no alcohol. Use common sense
@@Donger-wf9kc Alcohol is evil
@@Donger-wf9kcjust to clarify, no selling of alcohol. I'm pretty sure dry towns still allowed consumption if purchased elsewhere
This game is so therapeutic. I always play it when I need a break from reality. Its such a cozy game
Exactly! Finally said this lol
Real
Wish we got to experience Limpany before it burned, and maybe even Colter while there was life there, but the former left more to be desired. Looked so darn quaint of a town.
Yeah colter being an actual town with the snow would be awesome
maybe in red dead 3
@@paleolithicmanofthecave maybe by 2031 we'll get rdr3
Let’s be honest, there really isn’t a bad town in this game, the game is just that well made that each town adds its own piece to the puzzle
i straight up took so long to finish chapter 6 just because of how badly i hated being in annesburg 😂😂
5 years later without them even adding any kind of resolution or performance patch for new consoles, this game still feels like it could have released yesterday
It holds up between gameplay and narrative just fine and most especially it holds up visually, newer games may have technically surpassed it with resolution and fidelity in certain areas, but no matter how many of them that I have played, some of which are jaw-droppingly gorgeous, every time I jump back into RDR2 anytime I stop to move the camera around I realize and remember that this is the most beautiful game I've ever played
Anyway, I really like this video, your gameplay footage matches what you're talking about and you're well spoken. I would put some time stamps in the description or chapter selection for something like a ranking video in the future
I can't say I agree with your ranking, for me armadillo wouldn't even make my top 10 in this game because it was so incredibly disappointing to see that there's nothing in it. That entire area of the map feels like such a tease and such a waste, I have a feeling it's really only there for online. At the same time perhaps it's very authentic to the real wild West in that there's really nothing there other than a lot of rocks and lizards
But this is your ranking my friend and I appreciate you sharing
5 play throughs, been playing since its release and this game still doesn’t get old for me. The game performs like a dream even on my old ps4 hardware. Best game I’ve ever played 🐐
Also great video bro ❤️
I can’t believe it’s been 5 years since the greatest game of all time came out
And 10 for gtav
Me neither! Still remember waking up early the day it released to play it b4 work. No other game has given me the emotional rollercoaster this one has.
RDR2 is my #2… But damn time flies
@@darthinkarnatus7264so what’s #1
@@darthinkarnatus7264whats 1
I play DnD with my friends, and I’ve been DMing for a little while. This makes me think about how to properly make diversity of themes in towns and villages in games. I loved RDR2, but I never thought about these two things intersecting until now
Riding around valentine after leaving horseshoe overlook in my very first play through gave me the greatest feeling of wonder, excitement, nostalgia, and awe I’ve ever had while playing a game.
For me
1. Saint Denis (absolutely beautiful)
2. Rhodes (leymone is my favourite area, looks amazing, especially the swamps which are spooky)
3. Blackwater
4. Van horn
5. Although its not a city i love roanoke ridge, its creepy
Agree with Rhodes completely, however Saint Denis is only partly beautiful. Some very nice streets and houses but then most of it is a muddy industrial shithole.
Actually criminal that Valentine isn't there.
Saint Denis
Blackwater
Rhodes
Valentine
Strawberry
Armadelio
Tumbleweed
Annesburg
Van Horn
Colter
@@MitchellBPYao Solid list
Lakay may be a ghost town but its pretty cool to explore as you can learn more about the night folk
Saint Denis was always my favourite, in the earlier part of the story it felt like an escape from the troubles at camp. The vibe is also something I love
I have definitely felt at times that the saint denis area of the game can feel very “un-western” but Django unchained is one of my favorite westerns and it prominently features the southern U.S. which I think is something rockstar considered when making this game.
I love how in-depth you went with your love for these towns. You really nailed the vibe and reasons as to why the best towns are so different from each other. Subscribed.
I was surprised to see Tumbleweed that high on the list, but Rhodes and Valentine are perfectly placed. Absolutely loved both of those places playing this game
I love how there’s pretty much every type of town you can think of from the time period. It shows that the game isn’t just about the Wild West but about the time period as a whole.
My ranking (from worst to best)
10. Armadillo (a ghost town ravaged by plague)
9. Lagras (a bayou fishing village)
8. Van Horn (a lawless town run on vigilante justice)
7. Annesburg (an Appalachian mining company town)
6. Blackwater (a big city with a western feel to it)
5. Tumbleweed (a desert town deep in the wild west)
4. Strawberry (a western resort town)
3. Saint Denis (a big city that ushers in the future)
2. Valentine (a livestock town)
1. Rhodes (a southern town trapped between the Civil War and reconstruction)
Saint Denis (home base and Big Towm)
Blackwater (second base have a lot to offer)
Rhodes (red like but mostly one street)
Valentine (shopping perfect vibes)
Strawberry (hilly)
Armadelio (county)
TumbTumlioeed (desert)
Annesburg (mines)
Van Horn (by the river)
Colter (just snowy)
The problem with Van Horn is you can't just pick a fight, because it's like poking a wasp nest. Everyone will pull out their guns and start shooting at you.
Personally, I would have placed Strawberry higher and it probably has to do with what you said about Rhodes. It reminds me of home. Although it's meant to be a Rocky Mountain town, it shares a lot of similarities with Appalachian Mountain towns, so it feels very familiar with the terrain and plants and general architecture of what a mountain town would look like at the turn of the century.
I was thinking the same thing about strawberry having an Appalachian vibe to it
I mean, rocky and Appalachian mountain towns are both just American mountain towns
Also, the van horn thing is I think a neat little feature about the place. Everybody has each others back, and they don’t put up with BS.
@@M1N1molo Strawberry is based on real life Strawberry, Tuolumne County, California in the Sierra Nevada mountains.
Valentine is actually how i would create a small western village if they would ask me to do it. It is just simply perfect. Armadillo would be actually my number 2 if it wouldnt have cholera, and every building would be open and working.
I would have personally included Butcher Creek despite the fact there's no shops
I love finding new TH-camrs still making RDR2 content! 🙌🏽
You make some compelling points. Strawberry is probably the one I think back most positively on, but watching this, I'm realizing it's also probably the one I've spent the least time in.
I love how people still make videos on this masterpiece almost 5 years later
and are still (re)playing it, many times finding a bunch of stuff they missed on the first and even second gameplays. RDR2 rocks
It's too good
seeing those empty cores definitely tickles some nerve inside me
I really love Valentine, it’s my number 1 town as well. It’s just gives off classic Western stand-off vibes. Very similar to the towns in Unforgiven and The Magnificent Seven(with Denzel), which are both great movies. I think every town in the game is unique in its own way. Greatest game of all time!
Valentine is da goat.
Shady sounds @ hotel ✅
Most happening saloon ✅
Not too much cops ✅
Mountain view ✅
Also its in a very central part of the map and has pretty much every shop except a trapper/fence
0:56 it’s “lah-grahs” love the vid tho!
This game is a masterpiece, a timeless classic. Awesome video man, it has very cozy vibes.
Strawberry is a dry county so no saloons or alcohol at all I’m glad they kept it with the story mode
My favourite is Rhodes. I usually rank the towns just by the biom they're in. I prefer it because you can ride the best in the plains. No mountains or anything you have to avoid in order to get somewhere else
2:00 speak for yourself. I spent like 10 hours just fishing in the game.
Man I wish they focused on story mode like they do online. They should add more bounties, guns, quests, landmarks, secrets, places to explore etc. I’m a big story mode fan and have 100% the game it sucks there’s not more stuff to do😢
The reason strawberry doesn’t have a lounge is because it’s a dry town. The mission “A quiet time” mentions it, and the shopkeeper is a moonshiner because he can’t buy and sell normal liquor.
Gonna give this video a like y'know?
Hqhehfgfhf
Ok…?
You'll go places with this channel if you keep it up like that! One of the nicest videos about my favorite game I've seen.
You speak intelligently and from the heart + you have a great voice to listen to, which I think is important to be successful on TH-cam.
I'll check out more of your videos in the next days
I legit used to parkour off the roofs of Blackwater back in Red Dead 1. You brought back core memories
19:11 like wise brother 😂 solid ranking in my opinion
I love Rhodes also for the same reason. I’m from South Georgia and the area and everything represents the south. Makes it feel like home.
17:36, i didn't know valentine had superman as a bar man
to be completely fair to Ansberg. There is a whole mine you can explore
791. That's how many subs this channel has at the moment of my posting this comment. You're gonna blow up, son.
792 now! Great video
i may not agree with this list and think its kinda wrong but the way he backs up his reason with cool facts and reason its like a story hes telling us just about how valentine and van horn are better then saint denis
Dude you are so underrated, keep making videos like this!
You have no idea how much I’ve been thinking about Van Horn. I love going back to it, very underrated.
Saint Denis has to be my top pick. Admittedly, I never finsihed the game, or got anywhere near the end. But I did explore most of the map. Saint Denis has such a different vibe to the rest of the towns, which are mostly just small settlements and towns with a few shops. Cozy in their own right, and certainly fitting for a period piece game, but it just got a little old after awhile.
This touched a topic that was never talked about before on a RDR2 TH-cam video. Very entertaining. All cities were ranked correctly in my opinion.
Butchers creek should be on this list low on the list but I find it Wierd that in game it’s not got the black circle meaning it’s a town if lagras can have it so can butchers creek
I agree. I also wish that by the epilogue perhaps colter got reestablished somewhat as a small settlement like tumbleweed or van horn. Ambarino needs something
Rhodes is underrated finally someone rating it fairly
Spittin dude! I agree with nearly everything you say. I think all tumbleweed needed was more gunslingers or del lobos that you can antagonize, when im in Valentine and see a dude with a holster i can always duel them, tumbleweed it seems I can never find one. Strawberry is overrated so much. The hotel has so much potential to be a saloon and I find it odd they didn't take the chance to do so.
I guess the main or main reasons Strawberry does not have a saloon is most likely because it's meant to be a "dry" town, an all salons, even the Rodhe's Parlour House, only sell alcoholic drinks to the players - and that's one of the main themes of western saloons: booze and gambling. Second, it's like a fake puritan town trying to mimic the advances of industrialized civ but in a west mountain ressort which is nothing but a wannabe, it fails completely in its objectives. It's like one of the first towns built with tourism in mind in first place (like the way Vegas was built from the scratch). I guess even St. Denis makes a better role as what is intended to represent than Strawberry. Maybe tha's also why strawberry is for me a place to pass by and forget, even if it adds substance and diversity to the game - but anyway I also wait strawberry. the town could at least have a tea saloon where we could eat; a touristic place without the good ole regional food is for me a big flawd in Strawberry's built by Rockstar. You do there what you have to do, including exploring the mysteries, and never come back again. Mentioning explorer, the wilderness around and north of the town is simply astonishing, remarkable and the most enjoyable to explore by yourself with your horse. It's like one of the last reducts of nature untouched by human hand. Nice video. Cheers all.
I remember being sad I was too young to experience gaming staples like halo, mass effect, half life, portal and such. Well I wasn't too young for rdr 2 and I couldn't be happier. This game will be remembered for decades.
I love all the towns in the game… they all serve a niche purpose… but, no matter what, or who, or whatever I’m trying to get at with this… Strawberry is my absolute favorite! In story mode after completing the main story, I usually treat the game as a hunting simulator, I go and hunt around Big Valley and Tall Trees, I fish in every region… and in online I pretty much play the trader role almost exclusively when I’m not playing with my friends and family… so, I’m always in and around Strawberry. Love the ruggedness, the alpine vibes, the hunting is good, and Big Valley has some of the most stunningly beautiful camp locations in the whole map! I just love Strawberry! Valentine is my closest 2nd and Tumbleweed the 3rd. I rarely venture south towards Lemoyne, but I still love going there every now and then for some catfish and gator hunting!
Finally someone who understands Van Horn!!!!! Its my favourite town in the game because i fucking love the delapitated and bleak feel it has and its next to one of my all time favourite areas in gaming ever, AKA Roanoke Ridge. Sometimes the eery forest ambiance even carries over to visiting the town itself
I loved the game so much I bought it on both Xbox and PS5. Stupid yes, but those PS5 graphics are perfect for this masterpiece.
I play it on PS4. It's the best
This video is great! You gave excellent descriptions of each town and it's clear you have an aptitude for writing. Keep it up brother!
Let’s not ignore Valentine during the RAIN. Oh my god it’s something to behold.
You ever been to foggy, thick, dense Saint Denis? The vibe is IMMACULATE with the dense morning fog clumping against the ground as you walk through the civilization in the swamp.
Kudos from Dublin, Ireland man! Great video. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Haven't cranked up RDR2 in a while so you've inspired me to lassoo some people and throw them off clifftops! 😍😂
It really depends on what you consider town I feel like you could’ve included wapiti, thieves landing, colter, and macfarlanes ranch as towns that could’ve had more to do in them seeing as how they are technically settlements that you can fast travel to.
they aren’t listed as towns or cities in the compendium so they aren’t listed
large private land like Macfarland ranch would set a precedent of having to include things like caliga hall or pronghorn ranch which just aren’t in the same ballpark as the towns
@@filmsbyhen understandable it’s probably my preconceptions of them as towns in the first game
what about butchers creek?@@filmsbyhen
I'm shocked that Saint Denis is so low on the list. It's so atmospheric at night, and always fun with every revisit
Best story mode game ever
Yeah you bet. No game will beat it only RDR3 if Rockstar makes it
@@hansviernes5902don't think rdr3 could beat it's story tho
@@aspect359 It depends on how Rockstar narrates RDR3 story. If they narrate it really well for example the blackwater massacre and how Dutch founded the group and the game that settles in a western style than yes it could beat it but if Rockstar fails the story mode with other mix ups then rdr2 story mode will be the best.
@@hansviernes5902I don’t think RDR3 will be made sadly, even if it was a thing what would the story be? Who would be the main character? And how would they die? They’re gonna have to die, it’s the Red Dead Redemption series. Besides Rockstar also set the series at the end of the wild west, so it can’t really be about Jack.
@@user-zh5rj6wi9n The story would be about Dutch van Der Lin coming up with the gang and the black water massacre maybe. Idk the main character
I come to your channel every couple days before I hop on RDR2 to get my fill of the amazing world Rockstar created for us. Thanks for you awesome RDR content man. Rock on 🤘🏻
Personally, my favorite town is Rhodes. I just like the wild west feel that it has. In my opinion, it has more of that wild west feel than any other town in the game. The one town that I absolutely hate is by far St Denis. But that may be partially due to the fact that I grew up in a town of less than 200 people. Either way, I can't stand being forced to go there.
I can't say anything one way or another for the towns in New Austin, because I can no longer go to the epilogue. I can't handle Arthur's death. I just can't. So I no longer go past chapter 4, or at the *_tiniest_* possibility, chapter 5. But that's extremely rare. Truth be told, I like to keep it in chapter 2. Maybe chapter 3.
That’s funny cause I love Saint Denis. But I also live near New Orleans and go often, so I guess I’m a bit biased
@@brendan5235 Something I've gotten a kick out of is that here where I live there's a Blackwater, Rhodes, _and_ a Valentine all within riding distance of each other. I know the people from Rockstar didn't come here looking for inspiration of any kind. But it's just kinda funny in my opinion. Maybe little creepy too.
Losing someone you love is part of life, stop sitting in chapter 2 and finish the damn story
@@leolimitedition I have finished the story. Many times. But now I play it *HOW I WANT.* If you don't like my choice of play style, I don't care. I play it how I want and how I enjoy. I could throw your comment back at you and tell you to check off a few things and wait on the damn story. I will do whatever the hell I want in my games. If you don't like it, that's your problem not mine.
You're probably asking yourself what I do while staying in chapter 2. Well I complete many of the challenges, collect legendary animals and fish, and get the white Arabian. I collect rare/unique items like the ammolite, fluorite, shrunken head, and various masks. I check off landmarks. I try to get everything I can into my compendium. I plan for future stranger missions, such as Algernon's first request. I pick up hidden treasures around the game. I collect the hides needed for the _Legend Of The East_ satchel and camp upgrades. I get hides the trapper needs. I collect gold bars. Currently I have 22 gold bars. I prefer to sit on bars unless I reach a point that I'm desperate for money.
There are dozens of other things I do, but I figure this is a good indicator.
Also, what gives you the right to dictate how someone chooses to play a video game anyway miss Karen?
@@Jennifer-jt9cb but what’s really happening is you’re just going through the stages of grief, denial anger etc, but soon, acceptance. you disgrace this beautiful game by not playing it how it’s intended, you make Arthur suffer by withdrawing him from his fate, ever think about that? Legend of the east? I don’t think so, more like legend of the chapter 2 hermit
As someone who doesn’t really play video games anymore, I gotta say red dead 1 and especially 2 will forever be my favorite games that I can come back to. And with red dead 3 just confirmed I can’t wait to see what they make, even if it’s another 10 years away 😭.
I wish there were more interiors.
Everything you said about valentine is right, i love it.
my list would have to be
10. saint denis, would be 1 if there was more saloons. (my opinion)
9. annesburg, shitty, depressing town with a gun store where you can buy a gun to shoot yourself.
8.lagras, you said everything
7. armadillo, it doesnt have much to offer.
6. strawberry, no buisnesses
5. rhodes, cool place where you feel scary
4. tumbleweed, i dont stop by much, but when i do i will enjoy myself
3. Van horn, i LOVE this town, the feeling like if you talk youre dead.
2. Valentine, classic western town, easily the best place to hang out.
1. blackwater, my fave out of all, the ongoing construction and modernization, while people drink themselves to death, and gamble themselves away. overall fancy, but also rugged town
i love playing this game for my grandma because shes a huge fan of westerns and when i showed her rhodes she started telling me about how it reminded her of her childhood and the times she would go to louisiana. now everytime i play i think about the beauty of that dirt
Whatever town has the least amount of black people is my favourite town...
Bro💀💀💀
@@filmsbyhen This means tumbleweed is my least favourite... Btw can you do a video ranking them all by race? It would be a cool idea...
@@ColeyFlower-si1tu lagras?
@@filmsbyhen Sorry. It is irrelevant and I forgot it existed. Like you said in the video, it's just an extra...
hey man you got mentioned at 8:57 🎉
The song at the end, from "They Call me Trinity" gives the best Wild West vibe!
I like your ranking, but I would change it a bit. Mine would go:
10: Lagras 9: Annesburg 8: Armadillo 7: Tumbleweed 6: Van Horn 5: Strawberry 4: Rhodes 3: Valentine 2: Saint Denis 1: Blackwater
Other non-towns ranking: (Can't forget these dudes)
1: Grey and Braithwaith Estates 2: Thieves Landing (rdr2 Online) 3: Butcher's Creek 4: Wapiti Reservation 5: Cotler 6: Lakay
I'm currently at Beaver's Hollow in the game and I always find myself wanting to do any missions in the Western part of the map. Having to constantly got to Saint Dennis for specific shops is so grinding. I've just gone back to Valentine after a couple of Rains Falls missions and it is so refreshing. Lime you said, I wish Strawberry had at least a saloon. I would never leave that corner of the map if there was more reason to stay there.
You’re gonna love the epilogue, that unlocks the Great Plains and the desert
@filmsbyhen I've been in the epilogue for a long long time, and still not tired of riding the Plains
I'm a sucker for Lagras coz I love that goat that'll attack you out of nowhere, the fishing is fun there(due to the worry about crocs)plus the lady that runs the tackle shop is fabulously friendly. Valentine is my fave followed by van horn.
Rhodes is my personal favorite for asthetics, i just love that french colonial vibe. it just needs a god-damn poker table. I hate blackjack with a passion haha. Also where do all the rich folks in that fancy ass saloon even live??
Also good on you to notice Annesburg and Strawberry are beautiful but having literally nothing to do.
The last thing i want to add is that Tumbleweed's placing is genius. It gives you a reason to go to the far end of the map. I went to check on it in the prologue since i had a feeling i'd be populated and damn, it did not disappoint.
Bro I showed my grandparents this and they grew up in the 50s watching westerns and they love it.
My all-time favorite RDR2 event is Chapter 2 when the ladies are happily singing a vulgar song as they ride into town in a carriage with their uncles.
The town of Valentine is a good town with its events, small but with most of what you need, but I like the town of Saint Denis, where different cultures are mixed and greet each other respectfully and politely back!
My list:
1. Saint Denis (Despite it not being that close to the wild west atmposphere to me it remains one of the most complete and aestheticly pleasing cities out of all video games I've played.)
2. Valentine (combined with a chapter where you make really good memories Valentine is rightly considered one of the best and if not the best town in the game having intensive wild west elements.)
3. Blackwater (I was really curious to find out what Blackwater looked like because I hadn't played RDR. From the second I got into the town I was amazed. Beautiful, has everything activity-service wise and the fact that it has a port is something I really liked. I also believe it is the most accurate city of a time where the west wanted to ''de-westify.'')
4. Armadillo (Despite being believed that the city is kind of empty and odd it remains the most ''wild west city'' in the game. The idea of a town where crimes are technically allowed without law intervention in a game where you face trouble with the law and the bounty hunters all the time is pretty good too.)
5. Rhodes (Nice design with mostly all the services you'll need but nothing else that's really special about it.)
6. Strawberry (The idea of a mountain city was pretty interesting and honestly it is quite good. My only problem is that it is too condensed. Too many things in a small space. If it was the size of Rhodes or even Valentine It might had been on the top 3.)
7. Van Horn (A little bit blunt and soulless in a way. However it got it's character with the port n' stuff and also being able to massacre the whole town is the city's very trademark.)
8. Annesburg (It has to be the town that I've wandered around in the less. Never really attracted me. It seemed kind of irrelevant. Has nice surroundings though. The mining rigs in combination with the wilderness make a good environment.)
9. Tumbleweed (It has the wild west elements but it's empty. Literally almost nothing to do there other than wander around to enjoy the game's wilderness design.)
10. Lagras (Kind of the same thing with tumbleweed except in this ''town'' you actually can't do anything. The only reason why it's not 11th is due to the fact that it's the only place where bait and lure can be bought.)
11. Colter (Didn't even know it was considered a town until I searched it up. Only serves the purpose of the first chapter, you can't do anything after it in this ''town''.)
Valantine is my favourite because of the vibe. It just feels like where arthur belongs, i do love the parcour in blackwater, but i only did that as arthur, and somehow, i survived for a bit. I think strawberry is chill, but there isn't enough to do. Van horn is fun. I've actually never been to tumbleweed even though im on my 2nd playthrough, but it seems nice.
Edit: rhodes isn't bad but it shouldn't be in no. 2
Blackwater feels so disapointing after Saint Denni, like, I was hoping for something bigger
The best part is that tumbleweeds sheriff is always talking about how the law always wins but in rdr1 tumbleweeds becomes a gang hideout
Valentine is one of those “first” towns that feels surreal visiting and you’ll always remember the first time. Another example of this for me personally is my first time visiting Riverwood in Skyrim
rdr2 made me realize how much better and more alive the world feels compared to gta 5 simply because life is spread out more. gta 5's biggest mistake was having one big city at the bottom of the map and the rest just be countryside. theres rarely ay encouragement to even explore up there. in rdr2 i was happy to go wherever cause i knew wherever i went, i would find a town. here is to hoping its more spread out in gta 6.
One purpose of Lagras was to highlight the deep contrast in the quality of life for Black americans at the time. Lagras was an impovrished town with no infrastructure. An "out-skirts" town where poor blacks were forced to live, due to no economic opportunities. It was very well portrayed by RockStar.
I’m so glad that I’m not the only one who LOVES Tumbleweed, I always found it fascinating and creepy in rdr1 so seeing it full of life in rdr2 was such a treat
My favorites:
1. Blackwater
2. Valentine
3. Strawberry
4. MacFarlane Ranch
5. Rhodes
Either beautiful cities or beautiful locations. I love these. Red Dead Redemption is the most beautiful game ever.
My favorite is Valentine, I remember that very first time I made that left turn onto the main street. I was blown away, love at first sight. Next is Rhodes, same kinda 'western' vibe as Valentine but the red dust just makes it extra. It also has all the shops. My third favorite is Strawberry, I love the surroundings and the look, but it could've really done with a saloon and gunshop.
I just really appreciate you making this game really feel alive for me through your words!
This video is beautiful, i’ve never seen your channel but it’s great!
Also, I’m Italian so you have a fan from another country😁…
All jokes aside this video is perfect and you explained yourself very well!❤