Red Dead Redemption 2: my addiction to an amazing video game that brings out the worst in human behaviour

Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. After several years of abstinence to beat my addiction to video games (yes, at this age, I know), it looks like I’m hooked all over again.

And it’s all thanks to Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2) a magnificent, sweeping, epic, interactive symphony to America circa 1899, when the bad old days of the Wild West were coming to an end.

I’ve just finished the single-player mission after some 80 hours of gameplay stretching over nearly three months (yes, nerds, I know I’m not the fastest gun in the West, but I do have a very demanding full-time job as well as a life) and I must say it has been the most immersive and entertaining experience in front of a TV in many, many years.

RDR2 plunges you, role-playing the protagonist and noble white savage among a gang of outlaws on the run, into a vast, open world, lovingly crafted with stunning artistic vision and staggering detail by New York-based developer Rockstar Games.

In between hunting, fishing, robbing banks, rustling cattle, getting into gunfights and brawling in saloons, I found myself regularly pausing to take in the sheer beauty of RDR2’s virtual vistas, or to appreciate delightful little touches, like calling out, “Howdy, mister!” to an immigrant while riding through the Chinese quarters of a big city and have him say, “Jo san, sin sang!” – “Good morning, mister!” – back at me in Cantonese.

The rave review ends here. With the single-player mission done and dusted, I’ve moved on to the multiplayer experience with other gamers online and that’s where the fun comes to a full stop.

There’s still nothing wrong with the game design per se; rather, it’s the people playing it. I’m talking about those deplorables known as “griefers” in geek speak – players whose greatest pleasure lies in harassing others and ruining their enjoyment.