A little overwhelmed by first playthrough, any advice? /u/Life_Passenger3058 Red Dead Redemption

Hello lovely people,

This is my first-ever Reddit post. For some context, I (24F) have never gamed before. I even thought I wouldn’t like it. That is, until I got sick and have been bedridden for a year and a half. A friend let me borrow their Switch, and I played Red Dead Redemption 1 on it—and I was hooked. Now I’ve taken a small step up and got myself a PlayStation, and I’ve started playing RDR2.

I didn’t expect such a massive upgrade in the open world, how many missions there are, and the way something is always happening or unfolding wherever you go. While the outside world has closed off for me, a new one has opened!

However, I’ve run into the following problem: in RDR1, I usually had 2–3 storyline missions open, along with a Stranger mission. I was going for 100% completion, so I filled the gaps with challenges. I realized while playing that it would’ve made more sense to complete some missions in a different order. With RDR2, I’ve encountered the same issue—but on a much larger scale.

I’ve Googled and found all kinds of lists detailing missions in chronological or “optimal” order. Maybe it’s good to mention that I’m autistic, and this might sound silly, but it’s genuinely hard for me to let go of the idea that there might be an unwritten rule for the “correct” order to play. But following such lists kind of takes away the beauty of the open, interactive world and the freedom it offers.

I also want to chase after things like good horses and weapons, but I’m honestly getting overwhelmed trying to keep track of it all.

Do you have any tips for a first-time player? Does the order you play missions in actually matter? (The advice “avoid spoilers” is a bit late for me—I didn’t realize RDR2, was a prequel when I played the first game, and I Googled too much trying to make sense of the story. Still, it won’t stop me from enjoying it to the fullest!)

Thanks in advance for your advice!

Ps. It’s insane how many times I let my horse flip over while riding into something. Dang. Learning controls is not easy

Hello lovely people,

This is my first-ever Reddit post. For some context, I (24F) have never gamed before. I even thought I wouldn’t like it. That is, until I got sick and have been bedridden for a year and a half. A friend let me borrow their Switch, and I played Red Dead Redemption 1 on it—and I was hooked. Now I’ve taken a small step up and got myself a PlayStation, and I’ve started playing RDR2.

I didn’t expect such a massive upgrade in the open world, how many missions there are, and the way something is always happening or unfolding wherever you go. While the outside world has closed off for me, a new one has opened!

However, I’ve run into the following problem: in RDR1, I usually had 2–3 storyline missions open, along with a Stranger mission. I was going for 100% completion, so I filled the gaps with challenges. I realized while playing that it would’ve made more sense to complete some missions in a different order. With RDR2, I’ve encountered the same issue—but on a much larger scale.

I’ve Googled and found all kinds of lists detailing missions in chronological or “optimal” order. Maybe it’s good to mention that I’m autistic, and this might sound silly, but it’s genuinely hard for me to let go of the idea that there might be an unwritten rule for the “correct” order to play. But following such lists kind of takes away the beauty of the open, interactive world and the freedom it offers.

I also want to chase after things like good horses and weapons, but I’m honestly getting overwhelmed trying to keep track of it all.

Do you have any tips for a first-time player? Does the order you play missions in actually matter? (The advice “avoid spoilers” is a bit late for me—I didn’t realize RDR2, was a prequel when I played the first game, and I Googled too much trying to make sense of the story. Still, it won’t stop me from enjoying it to the fullest!)

Thanks in advance for your advice!

Ps. It’s insane how many times I let my horse flip over while riding into something. Dang. Learning controls is not easy