Why has Rockstar brought Red Dead Redemption to the Switch and PS4 in 2023?

After a runaway freight train of social media buzz over the last few weeks, Rockstar has now officially confirmed that it is indeed repurposing the original Red Dead Redemption for modern audiences. Well, sort of. It's not the highly-sought after, fully-realized remake many fans were pining for; nor is it a buffed and polished HD remaster for PS5 and Xbox Series X. What it is, is a so-called "conversion" of the wild western 2010 sandbox game that'll land on the Nintendo Switch and the PS4 for the first time later this month. 

Depending on where you stand, I'm sure that's either a good thing or a not-so-good thing. I'll say up front that the thought of kicking back on the couch with my Switch in handheld mode while mucking around in RDR's Undead Nightmare expansion sounds fantastic. But, if we consider the bigger picture – a landscape within which we reckon GTA 6 might land at some point next year, where GTA Online is approaching its 10th anniversary, and where Red Dead Online appears to be receiving less and less attention with each passing once-weekly, now-monthly update – I can't help but ask: why has Rockstar chosen now to roll out John Marston's maiden adventure on last-gen platforms some 13 years since its debut outing two console generations ago?

West intentions

Not that there's anything wrong with reaching back into the past. Red Dead Redemption is a stone cold classic that I returned to not so long ago, and it's as good today as it was in 2010. As outlined above, I like the idea of extending that nostalgia to its zombie-themed DLC that comes as part of this package, and we're hardly shy of remakes and revivals across all game genres elsewhere today. I enjoyed my time with the Grand Theft Auto Trilogy: The Definitive Edition back in 2021, but it's fair to say that it was hardly smooth sailing for the many players hit with bugs and crashes during their return to the series' 3D universe interpretations of Liberty City, Vice City, and San Andreas.  

Perhaps the latter point is why Rockstar is bringing Red Dead Redemption into a new decade, as a means of restoring faith in its ability to hold up the classics with care and respect. Founded by two ex-Rockstar Games devs, the England-based outfit Double Eleven is the studio charged with bringing Red Dead to Switch and PS4, whose resume spans over a decade of similar projects – such as bringing LittleBigPlanet to PSVita in 2011, Limbo to PS4 and Xbox One in 2014, and Prison Architect to the Switch in 2018, among many others. 

Leaning heavier into the realm of speculation, another reason for the decision could be tangentially related to The Last of Us. When it was revealed last year, I didn't think we needed a The Last of Us remake until I saw it in motion. At the time, I just didn't feel the graphical jump between TLOU's 2013 PS3 debut and last year's then proposed reworked iteration was big enough – that is, until I clapped eyes on it, and quickly ate my words. From a player's perspective, it was nice having The Last of Us Part 1 and 2 with visual parity, and, from a business perspective, it likely made sense to have both games looking as good as they could ahead of HBO's then incoming TV adaptation. 

Rockstar may not have any television deals lined up (that we know of), but it does have a blockbuster mainline sequel in the works in the shape of GTA 6, so perhaps now is the time to rekindle the buzz for older games. Perhaps Rockstar has bigger plans to bring Red Dead Redemption in-line with its stunning 2018 sequel at some point down the line too, and this is a way of reminding us how the first game looks in its base state while, of course, bringing in some extra cash along the way.

That's surely a best-case scenario type situation, and so taking the idea in the opposite direction might mean that GTA 6 is, actually, further away than we think. We reckon it's gunning for a some-point-in-2024 release at this stage, but if it's much further off – like, 2025 or beyond – perhaps this Red Dead Redemption news acts as an unexpected but necessarily revenue boost to bridge whatever the gap between now and the next mainline Grand Theft Auto game really is.  

Or maybe Rockstar simply wants to give Switch and PS4 players something cool 13 years after the fact. If it's that, then my next question is: GTA 4 on the Switch when? 

We might not get solid answers on any of the above, but it's worth noting that Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar's parent company, has its Q1 2024 earnings call on Tuesday, August 8, 2023 where Red Dead Redemption's conversion is bound to be discussed. 

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