Rockstar Games finally unveiled its plans for Red Dead Redemption 1, following website updates and rumors that seemed to be leading to a remaster/remake reveal. It was neither of those, with the developer announcing a re-release for Nintendo Switch and PS4. Along with the base game and Undead Nightmare expansion, it includes bonus content from the Game of the Year Edition.
It wouldn’t be too problematic if not for the $49.99 price. Remember: The Xbox 360 version has been backwards compatible with Xbox One for years, with 4K support on Xbox One X thanks to Microsoft’s tech (though it’s still locked at 30 FPS). Suffice it to say that fans aren’t happy about all this, especially the pricing and lack of major new features.
Speaking to IGN after Take-Two Interactive’s earnings call, CEO Strauss Zelnick addressed the pricing, stating, “That’s just what we believe is the commercially accurate price for it.”
Hannah Sage, EVP of Finance, added that it included Undead Nightmare. However, when asked if that contributed to the price, Zelnick said it “was a great standalone game in its own right when it was originally released, so we feel like it’s a great bundle for the first time, and certainly a great value for consumers.”
What about the PC version, which wasn’t announced? Zelnick said it’s up to the developer. Regarding the thought process behind ports versus remasters and remakes, he responded, “It depends on the vision that the creative teams have for a title, and in the absence of having a powerful vision, for something that we would do with a title, we might bring it in its original form, we’ve done that, and in certain instances we might remaster or remake, so it really depends on the title and how the label feels about it, the platform, and what we think the opportunity is for consumers.”
Red Dead Redemption launches on August 17th for PS4 and Nintendo Switch – check out screenshots for both versions here. A physical release is planned for October 13th.
