‘Red Dead Redemption 2’ is so good I neglected ‘Battlefield V’

Rockstar Games/Take-Two
Interactive

• I was highly anticipating “Battlefield V,” the newest entry
  in my favorite game series, and I’ve had a copy for weeks
  now. 
• But “Red Dead Redemption 2,” this year’s blockbuster Wild
  West game, stole its thunder — at least for me. 
• “Battlefield V” is still a great game, but it’s competing for
  my precious time with “Red Dead Redemption 2.”
• And let me tell you that it takes a lot to drag me away from
  my beloved “Battlefield.”

I’m probably the biggest
“Battlefield” fan in the office, and yet, I’ve neglected
“Battlefield V,” the latest entry in the war-gaming franchise,
since I got an early copy ahead of its November 20th
launch. 

Instead, I’ve played 136 hours of
“Red Dead Redemption 2” since November 4, a game set in the
tail-end of the outlaw days in the Wild West. To compare, I’ve
played a paltry 20 hours of “Battlefield V,” with a good chunk of
those hours dedicated to completing the story mode, rather than
any multiplayer.

To be honest, “RDR2” ruined the
launch of “Battlefield V,” at least for me.

Rockstar
Games

Out of a sheer sense of duty, I
forced myself to sit down and play “Battlefield V” after a
four-day marathon of “RDR2.” I started off with the story
campaign before playing the online multiplayer mode, as I usually
do with a new “Battlefield” game, but I only lasted about half an
hour until I couldn’t bear it any longer.

All I could think about was
“RDR2.” For the first time ever, I had been drawn away from my
favorite game series.

It’s not that “Battlefield V” is
a bad game. Quite the contrary, the online multiplayer mode of
“Battlefield V” is as good as ever, and it’ll get better over
time as new game modes are added and minor tweaks are made. You
know, it’s an entirely different game as “RDR2,” so it’s hard to
make a direct comparison. 

But if “Battlefield V” is a good
game, “RDR2”

is

a fantastic game. Gorgeous visuals, a great
story, a wide-open world to explore, good acting, and the general
vibe of the wild west all come together to make what is probably
the best game I’ve played in a very long time. It’s extremely
hard to put down, even with options as good as “Battlefield V” on
my plate.

Rockstar
Games

Even the menial tasks in “RDR2,”
like cooking food, feeding your horse, hunting, maintaining your
weapons, and even side quests enhance the game. In fact, unlike
side quests in a lot of other games, side quests in “RDR2”
actually enriches the main story.

I’m not saying everyone will
enjoy “RDR2,” nor am I saying that you should absolutely buy it.
Like most games you might be unsure about, your $60+ on “RDR2”
could either be the best you’ve even spent on a video game or it
could be the worst. I could be anyone telling you that “RDR2” is
a fantastic game, except I happen to have a megaphone in the form
of an online media outlet — Business Insider — and I just needed
to tell you how good it is. 

Perhaps my draw towards “RDR2” rather than “Battlefield V” also
has to do with the fact that World War II has been “done before,”
and it’s been done quite often. So, the novelty of World War
II-based games is slightly worn on me. Meanwhile, “RDR2” is the
first game I’ve played set in the Wild West setting, so it’s
brand new to me. 

Still, as I mentioned earlier, “Battlefield V” is also a great
game, or at least the multiplayer portion of it is. After “RDR2,”
the story campaign in “Battlefield V” feels antiquated, stiff,
and linear. But the story isn’t the reason why fans of the
“Battlefield” series buy each new game. 

EA/DICE

The visuals in “Battlefield V” are also beautiful, gameplay is
fantastic, and it has some of the best audio experiences in any
game. I find it difficult to overlook the horrors of war when I
play a “Battlefield” game because of the audio.

One thing that gets me when I play “Battlefield V” is crying out
for a medic after I’ve been mortally wounded, only to find that
no one is coming to my rescue. For some, it may seem like an
incovenience that your teammates aren’t there to help, and you
know you’ll re-spawn a few moments later.

To me — a sentimental person who deeply immerses himself into
pretty much anything on a screen — it makes me reflect on the
potential experience of being a wounded soldier during World War
II, and just how horrifying and terrifying it must have been to
be alone and inches from death. No other game makes me feel this
way, not even “RDR2.” To be sure, “Battlefield V” is the best
first-person-shooter I’ve played to date, at least so far. 

I suspect I’ll give my full attention to “Battlefield V” once I
tire of “RDR2.” That said, the online multiplayer mode of “RDR2”
is starting to roll out, which could tempt me away for longer.
For the first time ever, “Battlefield’s” dominion over my time is
threatened.