Red Dead was a franchise that was fairly unknown for the most part…that is, until Rockstar Games took over the IP and bestowed upon us one of the greatest open-world adventures of all time in the form of Red Dead Redemption. For the longest time, this was the only peek that gamers had into the Red Dead series until Rockstar Games decided to up the ante and release a sequel that most people consider to be one of the greatest open-world games of the modern generation.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is a marvel in every aspect, with the story, in particular, being a well-thought-out and emotional ride that most people would remember long after finishing this masterpiece. For people who still want to experience the feeling that Red Dead Redemption 2 invoked in them by playing other games, here are some other story-heavy games like RDR2 that will certainly fill up this void.
Updated September 11, 2022 by Ritwik Mitra: Red Dead Redemption 2 is one of the greatest open-world games ever made. Rockstar truly went above and beyond in a bid to develop a game with memorable characters, an amazing story, and pretty fun gameplay despite the many valid complaints players might have in this department. The narrative in this game is truly sublime and one of the biggest reasons to experience this amazing title in the first place. Here are some other story-heavy games like Red Dead Redemption 2 that fans need to check out.
20 Grand Theft Auto 4
Grand Theft Auto 4 was a massive step in the right direction for Rockstar Games. The adventures of Niko Bellic in Liberty City are pretty engaging in their own right, with fans fondly looking back on the events of this masterpiece.
The game’s open-world action coupled with an amazing narrative made for a great time indeed. This was also the first game to play around with the idea of alternate endings, managing to execute the concept pretty successfully.
19 Sleeping Dogs
Sleeping Dogs arose from the ashes of True Crime and wowed everyone by showing just how fun the game is. The melee combat of this game is truly one of a kind and one of the best parts of the other experience.
The other impressive half of Sleeping Dogs is its story, which follows the life of undercover cop Wei Shen. His assignments lead to him making friends with his targets and getting caught in a whirlwind of events that are all pretty memorable in their own right.
18 Mass Effect
Mass Effect is one of the greatest sci-fi epics in gaming history. Pretty much all three games could qualify for this list, with their stories being truly brilliant in their own right.
Even the ending ofMass Effect 3 has been improved dramatically with the various updates released over time by BioWare, making this conclusion pretty satisfying after a long and engaging journey. The inclusion of third-person combat will make fans of Red Dead Redemption 2 feel right at home, and the host of abilities that a player can mess around with makes these battles even more fun to experience.
17 Fallout: New Vegas
Fallout: New Vegas is one of the greatest open-world roleplaying games ever made. The game might’ve been unacceptably buggy on launch, but a slew of updates coupled with the many mods released for this game has turned it into a pretty stable experience on modern hardware.
New Vegas absolutely shines in its storytelling, accounting for everything the player does in both small and major ways. This ultimately leads to a great and satisfying experience that fans will have a blast playing.
16 L.A. Noire
L.A. Noire was a groundbreaking game at the time, with its amazing graphics and brilliant motion capture system leading to the game feeling all the more immersive. The facial expressions might seem a bit goofy right now but did a great job of letting players feel smart as they read faces and uncovered the mysteries of the cases they were pursuing.
The story of war veterans being unable to get over their trauma makes for a harrowing tale indeed, with the ending being pretty sad in its own right. Regardless, L.A. Noire is an experience that no fan of Red Dead Redemption 2 should miss out on if they loved the complex story of Rockstar’s western game.
15 Horizon Zero Dawn
Players looking for story-heavy games like Red Dead Redemption 2 will certainly enjoy Horizon Zero Dawn. The game served as an excellent addition to an already stellar lineup on the PlayStation 4, featuring an exciting world and brilliant characters that are bound to be expanded upon in the sequel.
One major thing to note about Horizon Zero Dawn’s story is the ingenious manner in which its scope expands as players get through the game. Initially, the game seems rather limited, and the world map is also rather limited as a result. However, as players get through the title, the story becomes more grandiose and epic, while the world also expands to allow the player to explore new regions as well.
14 BioShock Infinite
An excellent story-driven title that will be up the alley of any fan who wants more games like RDR2, BioShock Infinite is one of the greatest first-person shooter titles of all time. It’s a testament to Ken Levine’s genius that each and every game that he’s been a part of has been phenomenal.
Stepping into the shoes of Booker DeWitt and accompanying Elizabeth on a quest for the ages, BioShock Infinite features some of the most memorable video game moments of all time. It’s no wonder why people are still pining for either a sequel to this title or another Ken Levine masterpiece.
13 Cyberpunk 2077
Speaking of story-driven first-person shooters, one can’t fail to mention the immensely hyped title that was Cyberpunk 2077. While the game might’ve been disappointing for many, there’s no denying the fact that Cyberpunk 2077 is still an incredible title that any fan of story-driven games like Red Dead Redemption 2 should try out.
If players have a system that is stable enough to play the game, then they should definitely check this title out. It might not be the game that it was hyped up to be, but Cyberpunk 2077 is still an excellent title that deserves some praise for its great narrative and characters.
12 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
CD Projekt Red might be at its lowest point right now, but there was a time when the studio was celebrated within the gaming industry. This was mainly due to the massive success of its magnum opus, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
Geralt’s final chapter in The Witcher trilogy was a wild and entertaining ride that most fans still remember to this day. If any player is seeking out story-heavy titles like Red Dead Redemption 2, then they can’t really go wrong with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
11 Marvel’s Spider-Man
A Sony exclusive that has made waves since its arrival, Marvel’s Spider-Man has established itself as the best Spider-Man game around by quite some margin. Insomniac Studios truly poured in their heart and soul to create a game that genuinely makes players feel like the iconic web crawler.
What surprised most people in Marvel’s Spider-Man was the fact that the story was genuinely brilliant to behold, with its hooks keeping fans engaged up to the very end. It’s a great recommendation for any fan looking out for story-driven games like RDR2.
10 Days Gone
The slightly bugged launch of Days Gone meant that most gamers wrote this game off from the get-go, which is quite a shame since Days Gone has one of the more nuanced protagonists and interesting plots ever featured in a video game.
While the game might not be everyone’s cup of tea, players who come into this story knowing exactly what to expect — namely, an enjoyable open-world and a mature story — will definitely not be disappointed.
9 Shadow Of The Colossus
Team Ico has consistently pushed the boundaries when it comes to presenting interesting narratives in video games, and Shadow of the Colossus is no exception to this golden rule.
The idea of only facing sixteen enemies in a video game might not seem all that appealing, but it’s a testament to the sheer excellence of the enemy design and the mysterious nature of the narrative that Shadow of the Colossus still manages to be one of the greatest and most interesting video games to have ever been released.
8 The Last Guardian
The most recent game released by Team Ico might not have received all the great reviews of its past few titles — a shame, considering just how delayed it was — but that doesn’t mean the game is outright bad or unplayable.
If anything, players who are willing to look past the technical faults of The Last Guardian will be able to enjoy a narrative that is truly incredible and plays with a person’s emotions in ways they could’ve imagined.
7 Deus Ex
The original Deus Ex might feel extremely dated at times, but there’s no denying the fact that it’s still a great game with a plot that absolutely laden with conspiracy theories, political espionage, and everything in between.
In fact, a few mods are all that’s required to make Deus Ex infinitely playable even now, making for a title that is truly excellent in every sense of the word.
6 Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines
Half-Life 2 is a game that pretty much everyone is familiar with, but what these people may not realize is that there was another game released around the same time that was unfortunately overlooked due to the intense focus on Valve’s masterpiece of an FPS.
It’s a shame, since Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines is easily one of the greatest role-playing experiences in gaming with excellent writing across the board. Even the rushed final act of the game doesn’t stop it from being a memorable masterpiece that pretty much any gamer should check out if they love rich, deep narratives… and vampires, of course.
5 Bloodborne
Hidetaka Miyazaki is considered to be one of the greatest pioneers in the modern generation of gaming, and one need only experience the brilliance of Bloodborne to understand why this is the case.
Bloodborne is definitely one of the greatest video games of all time, in no small part due to its brilliant story. However, what makes this achievement even more impressive is the fact that the game never shoves any lore or exposition down the player’s throat save for an odd cutscene or two — it’s all up to the player to explore the game, read item descriptions, and connect the dots to figure out what happened in the world of Bloodborne.
4 The Last Of Us
Of course, that’s not to say that games full to the brim with cutscenes and dialogue are bad — if anything, games that do manage to pull this off in style deserve their due praise.
This is exactly what The Last of Us manages to pull off, with a brilliant and emotional story that tugs at the heartstrings of even the most stoic of players. The performances of Joel, Ellie, and the rest of the cast are incredible and truly get the player invested in every way possible.
3 God Of War
There was a time when Kratos was nothing more than an angry, bloodthirsty Spartan who wouldn’t stop until the Greek gods themselves were under his control. However, with the times, the gaming landscape has changed… and so did Kratos.
2018’s God of War is a monumental achievement by Cory Barlog and Santa Monica Studios, showing a new side of Kratos that is trying to forgo the past and raise his son without the help of his mother. It’s a brilliant and emotional tale that no fan of video games should miss out on.
2 Grand Theft Auto 5
It was inevitable that a Rockstar game would be an integral part of the conversation when it came to discussing some of the greatest games ever made by this studio. After all, Grand Theft Auto 5 is a masterpiece in every sense of the world, and one need only look at the people still faffing over it to understand why this is the case.
The story of Grand Theft Auto 5 is extremely well-told and presented in a concise manner, with a ton of laugh-out-loud moments that balance out perfectly with some of the more serious aspects of the story.
1 Red Dead Redemption
But of course, the best recommendation that anyone can make for gamers who want to play a narratively complex game like Red Dead Redemption 2… would obviously be the game preceding it.
Given the fact that Red Dead Redemption is technically a continuation to the second game, players who start off with the first game right after this will definitely find themselves right at home when it comes to the plot, which is just as narratively rich and astounding as its sequel.
Red Dead Redemption 2is available to play on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
