Red Dead Redemption 2 is a Western-themed 2018 action-adventure game developed and published by Rockstar Games. A prequel to the 2010 game Red Dead Redemption, the game is set in 1899 in a fictionalized representation of the Western, Midwestern and Southern United States and follows outlaw Arthur Morgan, a member of the Van der Linde gang. Arthur must deal with the decline of the Wild West whilst attempting to survive against government forces, rival gangs, and other enemies. The game was announced on October 18, 2016, and was widely anticipated. It was nominated for Most Anticipated Game at The Game Awards in 2016 and 2017, and for Most Wanted Game at the Golden Joystick Awards.

The game was released worldwide on October 26, 2018, for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles. Red Dead Redemption 2 received "universal acclaim" from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic; it is one of the highest-rated games on Metacritic, and the highest-rated PlayStation 4 and Xbox One game alongside Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V. The game had the largest opening weekend in the history of entertainment, making over in three days, and had the second highest-grossing entertainment launch (behind Grand Theft Auto V. It set records for most pre-orders, largest first-day sales, and largest sales for the first three days in market on PlayStation Network.

Red Dead Redemption 2 won over 175 Game of the Year awards, receiving wins at the Australian Games Awards, Brazil Game Awards, Fun & Serious Game Festival, IGN Australia Select Awards, and Italian Video Game Awards, and from outlets such as 4Players, AusGamers, Complex, Digital Trends, Edge, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Gamereactor, GameSpot, The Guardian, Hot Press, news.com.au, Official Xbox Magazine, The Telegraph, USgamer, and Vulture; it was named runner-up by several other publications. The game was named among the best games of the 2010s by Entertainment.ie, The Hollywood Reporter, Metacritic, National Post, NME, Stuff, Thrillist, VG247, and Wired UK. Red Dead Redemption 2 was ranked among the best games of its generation by Game Informer, GamesRadar+, and IGN.

The game garnered awards and nominations in a variety of categories with particular praise for its story, performances, music, and graphical design. At The Game Awards 2018, the game received eight nominations and went on to win four awards: Best Audio Design, Best Narrative, Best Score/Music, and Best Performance for Roger Clark as Arthur Morgan. At IGN Best of 2018, the game garnered seven nominations; it won two awards and was named runner-up in four (behind God of War). The game earned eight nominations at the 22nd Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, including Game of the Year. At the 6th SXSW Gaming Awards, Red Dead Redemption 2 was named the Trending Game of the Year and won for Excellence in SFX and Technical Achievement. The game received seven nominations at the 19th Game Developers Choice Awards, and six at the 15th British Academy Games Awards.

Accolades Award Date Category Recipient(s) and nominee(s) Result British Academy Games Awards April 4, 2019 Best Game Red Dead Redemption 2 Artistic Achievement Red Dead Redemption 2 Audio Achievement Red Dead Redemption 2 British Game Red Dead Redemption 2 Narrative Red Dead Redemption 2 Performer D.I.C.E. Awards February 14, 2019 Outstanding Technical Achievement Rob Nelson, Imran Sarwar, Aaron Garbut, Phil Hooker, Stuart Petri, and Dave Hynd Game of the Year Sam Houser, Dan Houser, Rob Nelson, Aaron Garbut, and Phil Hooker Adventure Game of the Year Online Game of the Year Josh Needleman, Tarek Hamad, and John Sripan Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction Sam Houser, Dan Houser, Aaron Garbut, Rob Nelson, and Phil Hooker Outstanding Achievement in Animation Jim Jagger and Mark Tennant Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction Aaron Garbut, Paul MacPherson, and Josh Bass Outstanding Achievement in Character Arthur Morgan (portrayed by Roger Clark; written by Dan Houser, Michael Unsworth, and Rupert Humphries) Dragon Awards September 2, 2019 Best Science Fiction or Fantasy PC / Console Game Red Dead Redemption 2 Game Audio Network Guild Awards March 21, 2019 G.A.N.G. / MAGFEST People's Choice Award Red Dead Redemption 2 The Game Awards December 1, 2016 Most Anticipated Game Red Dead Redemption 2 December 7, 2017 Most Anticipated Game Red Dead Redemption 2 December 6, 2018 Best Audio Design Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Narrative Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Performance Best Score/Music Red Dead Redemption 2 Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Action/Adventure Game Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Art Direction Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Game Direction Red Dead Redemption 2 Game Developers Choice Awards March 20, 2019 Best Technology Red Dead Redemption 2 Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Audio Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Design Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Narrative Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Visual Art Red Dead Redemption 2 Innovation Award Red Dead Redemption 2 Gamers' Choice Awards December 9, 2018 Fan Favorite Fall Release Red Dead Redemption 2 Gaming Moment of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 has the biggest opening weekend of any entertainment property Golden Joystick Awards November 17, 2017 Most Wanted Game Red Dead Redemption 2 November 16, 2018 Critics Choice Award Red Dead Redemption 2 Ultimate Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 November 15, 2019 Best Multiplayer Game Red Dead Online Guild of Music Supervisors Awards February 13, 2019 Best Music Supervision in a Video Game Hollywood Music in Media Awards November 20, 2019 Soundtrack Album Red Dead Redemption 2 – VA OST Original Song — Video Game "That's the Way It Is", written and performed by Daniel Lanois Italian Video Game Awards April 12, 2019 Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Art Direction Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Audio Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Character Arthur Morgan Best Game Design Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Narrative Red Dead Redemption 2 People's Choice Red Dead Redemption 2 Japan Game Awards Global Award, Foreign Product Red Dead Redemption 2 New York Game Awards January 22, 2019 Herman Melville Award for Best Writing Red Dead Redemption 2 Statue of Liberty Award for Best World Red Dead Redemption 2 Big Apple Award for Best Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game Tin Pan Alley Award for Best Music in a Game Red Dead Redemption 2 January 3, 2021 Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Outstanding Story-Rich Game Red Dead Redemption 2 January 2, 2024 Labor of Love Award Red Dead Redemption 2 SXSW Gaming Awards March 16, 2019 Excellence in SFX Red Dead Redemption 2 Excellence in Technical Achievement Red Dead Redemption 2 Trending Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Video Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Excellence in Animation Red Dead Redemption 2 Excellence in Design Red Dead Redemption 2 Excellence in Musical Score Red Dead Redemption 2 Excellence in Visual Achievement Red Dead Redemption 2 Titanium Awards December 10, 2018 Game of the Year Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Game Design Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Original Soundtrack Best Adventure Game Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Artistic Design Red Dead Redemption 2 Best Narrative Design Red Dead Redemption 2

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