High Def Drifter

Yes, that's the best I could come up with.

There's always been dearth of Western-themed video games despite seeming rife for action-oriented titles. That isn't to say there aren't any at all, but there's a slow trickle of about one a year, and I wouldn't say any of them have achieved a classic status. Outlaws, the first-person shooter from LucasArts back when they weren't just exclusively focused on Star Wars, has always been the benchmark. I have fond memories of it, but I'd wager if I went back and played it now I might find it hasn't aged particularly well. The two Call of Juarez titles have been admirable, but ultimately mediocre stabs at the setting. The same could be said of the much more ambitious Gun, though its brief length and limited playing area for an open-world game worked against it. Now Rockstar is having a second go with Red Dead Redemption.
Red Dead Revolver was originally a Capcom title that they lost interest in developing, selling it to Rockstar who finished the game and was a respectable success. It was a mostly linear third-person shooter with some basic cover mechanics, but the fun combat, quick-draw showdowns, weapon upgrading and side missions made it a pretty enjoyable title, the main drawback being that difficulty curve ranged from challenging to murderous.
It was surprising, though, to have Rockstar announce a sequel, Red Dead Redemption, considering the original was released way back in 2004. And even though I don't have negative memories of Revolver, the early media didn't even make it a blip on my radar. But today Rockstar released what they say is the first in a series of video showing off the gameplay of Redemption, and now I'm probably looking forward to it more than anything else.


-K.