10 Amazing Western Movie Homages In Red Dead Redemption 2

It is only natural for game developers to look past their own medium for inspiration in other fields of entertainment. After all, the Lord Of The Rings series has for years served as the foundation for many works of fantasy - just as the Dune series has helped lay the groundwork for many works of science-fiction.

The video game industry is no exception to this practice. From Call Of Duty using iconic moments from classic war films, to Tomb Raider and Uncharted borrowing multiple elements from Indiana Jones, many games have used other forms of media as inspiration and have paid homage to them in various ways.

This is also the case for Red Dead Redemption 2. It becomes apparent from playing the game that Rockstar certainly did their homework as there are multiple similarities and references to many classic western films.

Where some are used as a cornerstone for the game's story, characters, aesthetics and locations, others are used as a guideline for the game's themes and action sequences.

But no matter how obvious or obscure these references in the game are, their presence in the final product will be made clear in the following list.

After completing the opening chapter to Red Dead Redemption 2, the player is allowed to roam free and explore most of the game's enormous map. But just before you head off into the open countryside, the game gently nudges you in the direction of a small livestock town called Valentine.

This is very much done on purpose - for if you decide to look into the aforementioned town you will enter an archetypical looking settlement of the American frontier. From its wooden floorboard sidewalks and muddy road to its general stores, bank and saloon, Valentine does a great job at immersing you further into the game’s setting.

But after wandering around for a while, Valentine will remind some fans of the town Harmonville from Open Range.

The film follows a group of open range cattlemen who get on the wrong side of a ruthless land baron and a corrupt sheriff, culminating in a shootout throughout the town. The town's muddy streets and dodgy alleys are the spitting image of those in Valentine. It’s also fitting that a story mission in Valentine ends with players shooting up the whole town, much like in the ending of Open Range.