Our picks, beyond the numbers
5 games like Red Dead Redemption 2 we would recommend for different reasons
Red Dead Redemption 2 treats its frontier like a place people actually lived in, not just a backdrop for shootouts — the Van der Linde gang's slow unraveling matters as much as any gunfight, and the land itself, with its weather and wildlife and distances, does a lot of the storytelling. We looked for games that carry one piece of that forward: the western setting, the outlaw story, or the particular rhythm of life on the frontier.
A couple of these are the most direct way back to this exact world and its characters; others take the western somewhere smaller or stranger while keeping something of its spirit. Here's where we'd send a Red Dead Redemption 2 player next.
Red Dead Redemption
Our first choice for more of John Marston
Red Dead Redemption is the obvious place to start, and for good reason: it's John Marston's story, the one Red Dead Redemption 2 builds toward, following him as he tracks down the last remaining members of his old gang across the same fictional frontier.
We'd point a Red Dead Redemption 2 player here first because the fundamentals — third-person open-world westerns, horses, a story rich in character — transfer directly, and the included Undead Nightmare campaign gives you a stranger, zombie-horror detour if you want a change of pace from straight drama.
One real caveat: Rockstar's own description for this PC release states it does not include multiplayer content, so if GTA Online-style social play is what you'd want to carry over, it isn't here. Choose it for Marston's story and the Undead Nightmare bonus, not for an online mode.
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger
For stylized shootouts with a storyteller's twist
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger trades Red Dead Redemption 2's sprawling open world for tight, first-person shootouts, but makes up for the smaller scale with a clever hook: a bounty hunter narrating his own life, with the game visibly reshaping itself as his story contradicts or exaggerates in real time.
We like it for a Red Dead Redemption 2 player who wants the western mythology — real outlaws like Billy the Kid and Jesse James all make appearances — distilled into something punchier and more arcade-focused, with bullet-time gunfights instead of slow-burn exploration.
It's single-player, linear and considerably shorter than Red Dead Redemption 2, with none of its open-world wandering or wildlife. Pick this one for a quick, stylish western fix, not for another huge frontier to explore.
Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood
For a grittier, more linear outlaw story
Bound in Blood sends you through the Old West of 1864 as one of two brothers, with a first-person structure that's far more corridor-shooter than open-world wander, but a story about family, betrayal and violence that fits the same thematic territory as the Van der Linde gang's fall.
We'd choose it for someone who wants a grittier, more linear western campaign rather than another open frontier — the pacing is tighter, and the brothers' rivalry gives it a personal throughline similar in spirit to Red Dead Redemption 2's own family-like gang dynamics.
Its online features are no longer supported, so this is a single-player-only experience today, and its structure is a shooting gallery compared to Red Dead Redemption 2's open world. Choose it for the story and the gunplay, not for exploration.
Gun
For an earlier take on the open-world western
Gun is one of the earlier attempts at exactly what Red Dead Redemption 2 would later perfect: a third-person open-world western, riding across canyons, plains and gold-mining towns in a lawless frontier setting.
We'd point someone here mostly out of curiosity about where this genre came from — it's a rougher, much older game, but the ambition to put an open western world under your control is already clearly present.
Expect dated mechanics, a far smaller world and none of Red Dead Redemption 2's detail or systemic depth. Pick this one if you're specifically curious about an earlier open-world western rather than looking for a modern equivalent.
Westerado: Double Barreled
For a lighter, pixel-art revenge tale
Westerado: Double Barreled shrinks the open-world western down to 2D pixel art, but keeps a surprising amount of player agency: you're hunting the man who killed your family, and you can draw your revolver on practically any character in conversation, shaping how your own revenge story plays out.
We like it as the wildcard pick here — a lighter, far smaller game that still captures something of Red Dead Redemption 2's interest in choice and consequence on the frontier, plus local co-op and split-screen play if you want to share the hunt.
It has none of Red Dead Redemption 2's scale, realism or cinematic weight — this is a quick, scrappy indie western, not a substitute for its open world. Choose it when you want that same revenge-story premise in a much smaller, more playful package.
