It was only last week that Rockstar Games unceremoniously announced Red Dead Redemption 2 for PC, finally bringing the popular western series over to the platform. And now, alongside launching pre-orders on its new launcher and revealing what sort of computers prospective players will need to run the game smoothly, it has announced what PC exclusive enhancements are included.
Rockstar is calling the PC version "the ultimate version of Arthur Morgan and the Van der Linde gang’s open world epic," coming with a host of "technical, graphical and performance enhancements." Going into more detail, the PC version will support increased draw distances, better global illumination and ambient occlusion implementations for enhanced day and night lighting.
For added realism, enhanced snow trails, reflections, as well as high resolution and more detailed shadows were also confirmed alongside tessellated tree textures and improved grass and fur textures. It will come with HDR support and the ability to run at resolutions of over 4K. Ultrawide and multi-monitor setups will be supported as well, with no frame limits in sight.
In addition to delivering a better-looking experience, Rockstar is also adding new content to the single-player side just for the Red Dead Redemption 2 PC version, which includes a brand new mission as well. Here"s the PC exclusive content that"s incoming with the new release:
3 new Bounty Hunter Missions
- Herman Zizendorf has been stealing tools from tradesmen—track him down in Blackwater.
- Ex-Confederate Cavalry Officer Camille de Millemont is wanted dead or alive out by Catfish Jacksons, but his loyal men are never far behind.
- Bart Cavanaugh and his men are camping out in Big Valley. Take Bart dead or alive without alerting the others if you want to avoid a whole mess of trouble.
2 new Gang Hideouts
- Take on the deadly Del Lobos gang in new hideouts at Gaptooth Breach and Solomon’s Folly.
2 new Treasure Maps
- Search for treasures across the new Landmarks of Riches and The Elemental Trail maps for gold bars and other rewards.
New Story Mode weapons
- M1899 Pistol: All-new Semi-automatic handgun with clip loaded ammunition
- Evans Repeater: High capacity repeater (previously available in Red Dead Online only)
- High Roller Revolver: Ornate double-action revolver (previously available in Red Dead Online only)
- Le Mat Revolver: Powerful revolver with the ability to shoot shotgun shells (previously available in Red Dead Online only)
New Mission "To The Ends of The Earth"
- Collect requested herbs for a range of rewards.
New Story Mode horses
- Warped Brindle Arabian: A fast and agile mount.
- Few Spot Appaloosa: Beautiful and hardy, ideal for cross-country journeys.
- Perlino Andalusian: A healthy, sturdy animal, ideal for hunting (previously available in Red Dead Online only).
- Red Chestnut Arabian: A fleet-footed beast with a distinctive coat (previously available in Red Dead Online only).
- Plus 3 new wild horse variations: Keep an eye out for wild herds featuring the Buttermilk Buckskin Kentucky Saddler, Liver Chestnut Morgan and Gold Palomino Tennessee Walker.
5 new trinkets
- Hawk Talon: Permanently decreases Stamina bar drain speed by 30% when drawing a bow
- Cat Eye: Permanently increases the length of Fortifying tonic effects by 20%
- Shark Tooth: Permanently increases horse bonding experience bonus by 10%
- Turtle Shell: Permanently increases health bar refill speed by 10%
- Crow Beak: Permanently increases looted ammo by 10%
See the newly shared minimum and recommended specifications below. Although most of the asking hardware is pretty normal for current day games, Rockstar is hoping PC players will have an eye-watering 150GB of free storage space to install the game:
Minimum
- OS: Windows 7 - Service Pack 1 (6.1.7601)
- Processor: Intel Core i5-2500K | AMD FX-6300
- Memory: 8GB
- Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 770 2GB | AMD Radeon R9 280 3GB
- HDD Space: 150GB
- Sound Card: DirectX compatible
Recommended
- OS: Windows 10 - April 2018 Update (v1803)
- Processor: Intel Core i7-4770K | AMD Ryzen 5 1500X
- Memory: 12GB
- Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB | AMD Radeon RX 480 4GB
- HDD Space: 150GB
- Sound Card: DirectX compatible
It"s unclear what resolutions and frames the studio was targeting for the specifications, but judging by the recommended hardware, it should be enough for 1080p 60fps play.
Discounted pre-orders are also now live on the Rockstar Launcher, but it"s not possible to buy the Standard Edition. As such, Red Dead Redemption 2 Special Edition comes in at $59.99, while Ultimate Edition can be had for $79.99. Both versions arrive with varying amounts of cosmetic items as well as gameplay boosts, cash bonuses, plus a bank robbery mission and a hideout for the story mode. See the comparison image above for the full rundown.
Rockstar is also offering two games from its classic repertoire for free to those pre-ordering Red Dead Redemption 2 from its launcher. The choices are Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City, San Andreas, Bully, L.A Noire, and Max Payne 3.
Epic Games Store and other digital stores will begin selling pre-orders starting on October 23. Steam is coming in at last with a December release, even after the game officially launches on November 5 across other stores.