‘Red Dead Redemption 2’ Release Date, Latest News: Demo Shown in Closed-Door Presentation & Gamestop Employees Have Mixed Reactions

The years of waiting for the release of “Red Dead Redemption 2” is almost over and more gameplay demos are coming out. But some Gamestop employees have mixed reactions after exclusively witnessing a live demo of the upcoming title.

Eurogamer reports that developer Rockstar Games hosted a closed-door presentation at the 2018 GME Conference in Indianapolis in the final week of August. Gamestop employees who attended the event were shown an exclusive 20-minute gameplay demo of “Red Dead Redemption 2.”

The presentation was supposed to be a secret event. But, thanks to social media, an employee shared a now-deleted photo on Instagram proving that Rockstar Games graced the conference with an exclusive “Red Dead Redemption 2” preview.

There is no doubt that “Red Dead Redemption 2” is one of the most anticipated video games to be released this year. So it is quite surprising that some of the Gamestop employees in the audience found the gameplay demo presentation to be quite boring.

However, to the game’s defense, some of the people who saw the “Red Dead Redemption 2” presentation argued that the title still looks promising but last week’s onstage presentation just needed improvement. “Don’t get me wrong, I still think the game will be fantastic, just the demo was kinda boring to watch,” one of the employees in the audience commented in a Reddit thread.

Another one also commented that they believe “Red Dead Redemption 2” is a “beautiful game.” Unfortunately, the demo presentation in question was mostly focused on the horse-riding aspect of the gameplay. “Very difficult to stay awake,” the Reddit user added.

In the previously released gameplay walkthrough available on YouTube, Rockstar Games showed that horse riding is one of the most improved gameplay elements in “Red Dead Redemption 2.” Players will have to apply some strategies in picking the horse breed that will complement their mission. Players will also have to show their horses some love if they want them easier to control during a gunfight or any other encounter with an enemy.

As for the said “Red Dead Redemption 2” presentation last week, another Gamestop employee suggested that showing the live demo at the very end of the conference did not help. “To give a little context, everyone was exhausted from the week and it’s the last thing they showed us. I nodded for a minute but the game is beautiful,” said the employee.

It looks like Gamestop landed some exclusivity deals with Rockstar Games in terms of the upcoming game’s release. Gamestop is the only store that will offer a Collector’s Box with exclusive items designed after the story and characters of “Red Dead Redemption 2.” The much-awaited sequel will be available by Oct. 26.