5 things GTA 6 shouldn't learn from Red Dead Redemption 2

As the last mainline Rockstar title, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the most ambitious and impressive game from the GTA developers. As such, many fans want GTA 6 to take inspiration from the title and include popular features from it. However, one thing to note is that the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Universes are quite different, and not all features and mechanics from the latter would suit the former.

As a result, there are many features that the upcoming Grand Theft Auto title shouldn't take from Red Dead Redemption 2. This includes gameplay features that are fundamental to RDR2, which would feel out of place in GTA 6.

Note: This article is subjective and reflects the writer's opinion.

---

5 things GTA 6 shouldn't take from Red Dead Redemption 2

1) Weapon storage

According to rumors, GTA 6 will have a limited weapon-carrying capacity, like in Red Dead Redemption 2. Players will reportedly only be able to carry one melee weapon along with two large and two small firearms. This was uncovered from the 2022 gameplay leaks, which revealed the different types of weapon wheels that Rockstar was experimenting with during the game's development.

Limited slots are a welcome change to the limitless arsenal seen in the series. However, it might be quite troublesome if players need to manually choose and carry weapons out of their vehicle storage every time (as opposed to Horse Cargo in RDR2). Instead, there should be the ability to switch between the different available weapons in each slot without accessing a vehicle storage.

---

2) Reload speed

Red Dead Redemption 2 has excellent attention to detail when it comes to the weapons. Almost every weapon is identical and accurate to its historical counterpart in terms of look and feel. However, there's one small thing that detracts from this realistic experience — the reload animations. Arthur has a superhuman reload speed, which doesn't really fit in with the immersive Western theme.

Some of the animations are broken, but there's a mod that fixes this to make the reloads feel much more immersive. GTA 6 shouldn't need a mod to fix the reload animations; it should focus on realistic reloading. Modern weapons are easier to reload anyway, so this shouldn't be an issue even for casual gamers.

---

3) No purchasable properties

In Red Dead Redemption, John Marston can purchase a variety of safehouses in various regions of the map. However, with Red Dead Redemption 2, Rockstar removed this feature in favor of hotel rooms, which are temporary safehouses, and the gang's camp, which changes locations based on which point of the story the player is in.

While this fits in with the plot of RDR2, this shouldn't be a thing in GTA 6. Rockstar needs to add the ability to buy numerous safehouses across the map like in GTA San Andreas, or various apartments like in GTA Online.

---

4) Honor system

The Honor system is a nice way to monitor a player's actions during the storyline of RDR2. This means that every action has consequences, and the world feels more alive. It also decides the outcome of the plot itself, and encourages players to play less chaotically. This is to show that the protagonists, Arthur Morgan and John Marston, are not psychopathic mass murderers.

This feature wouldn't fit into a Grand Theft Auto game. The GA titles are known for their ability to cause mayhem in their open-world environments, and most players enjoy catching a break by running down the in-game pedestrians with vehicles or blowing up the environment and causing mass casualties. Both GTA 4 and 5 have choiced-based outcomes and endings that don't adhere to an honor system, so the same hold true for the next game.

---

5) Wanted system

The wanted system in RDR2 is unfortunately one of its poorest aspects. The law can immediately catch up to the player, even in remote locations on the map, and they can afford to send an entire army after the player. This is one feature that players would be glad not to have in Grand Theft Auto 6. The wanted system needs a major revamp anyway, as it was completely broken in Grand Theft Auto 5.

The police should only respond to crimes that they or a civilian are witness to. They also shouldn't immediately try to kill the player like in Grand Theft Auto 5. There are mods for both RDR2 and Grand Theft Auto 5 that fix this issue, so it shouldn't be difficult for Rockstar to implement a realistic wanted system in the next game.

---

In other news, physical disc versions of GTA 6 have seemingly been confirmed for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.