Red Dead Redemption made a killing at the Spike TV Video Game Awards last night, bringing home the prizes for Best Original Score, Best DLC (Undead Nightmare), and Game of the Year. As insignificant as that may be to a lot of gamers, it sends a clear message to the industry: co-op is teh good. Awards won by Halo: Reach, Call of Duty: Black Ops, DJ Hero 2, Rock Band 3, and a special mention of Portal 2 all served the same purpose. Co-op is loud; co-op is proud.
If this event has suddenly renew your interest in playing Red Dead Redemption - as it has mine - then Rockstar has just the pill to get you started: some co-op tips. We've posted them in their entirety below. See you on the trail, pilgrim.
Ammunition (The Mexican Army has the town of Tesoro Azul under siege. Storm the gates under heavy cannon, Gatling gun and sniper fire to destroy the Mexican artillery placements.)
- As soon as the mission begins, everyone in your posse should immediately head to the east gate and take out all enemies in that direction. A pretty strong mobilization of enemies awaits you outside of the west gate, and it's just best to approach them through the east gate. Work your way out and then up the south hill.
- The Gunslinger class is a good choice for the beginning of the mission, but later on, the Soldier class works well with the Winchester Repeater. It's best to discuss classes with your posse before beginning.
- One person in your posse should be a Marksman to take down enemies high up on the south hill. This person will have to approach the enemies cautiously as it is dark and stormy during this entire mission.
- Use cannons up on the south hill to take out enemies west and north of Tesoro Azul. A few shots should get rid of most of the enemies on the ground, but beware of an enemy that mans a Gatling gun outside the west gate.
- After planting explosives at the end of the mission, be absolutely sure your whole team clears the area before everything goes boom.
The Escape (Attack and steal a gold coach along with a wagon and a Gatling gun. Once acquired, you will be sent to turn them in to the American Army and then must clear out remaining resistance in the town of Tumbleweed. After clearing the town, prepare for an explosive standoff that will take you all the way to Mexico.)
- Kill all of the enemies surrounding the first area using the Winchester Rifle included with the Soldier class or the Repeater Carbine included with the Gunslinger class.
- If you have 4 players in your posse, have two get on each transport: the Mobile Gatling Gun and the Gold Coach. If you have 2 or 3 players, it's best to all gather in the Gold Coach.
- In Tumbleweed, it helps to have one player be a Marksman to go to the top of a nearby ridge to take out the enemies manning the Gatling Guns.
- Enemies are very spread out in Tumbleweed, so stay together or you could find yourself falling to the ground without any nearby posse members to come and help get you revived...
The Herd (Cattle rustlers have taken control of Box Canyon. Fight your way in and wipe out the rustlers, then use teamwork to protect the herd as you lead them home to Armadillo while drawing heavy fire from snipers and reinforcements on horseback.)
- One member of your posse should choose the Marksman class to take out enemies from above with the Rolling Block Rifle at the beginning in Pike's Basin. Others should choose the Soldier class to use the Winchester Repeater.
- Take care when using Dynamite, Fire Bottles and Throwing Knives around the cattle. Keep as many alive as possible.
- Once you've shot down everyone in the first area, appoint one person to stay behind and herd the cattle. All others should go ahead and clear the area of enemies.
- When your posse enters Cholla Springs, the herd of cattle will be much more vulnerable to being shot. It's best to continue having one person herd the cattle and the rest concentrate on incoming fighters.
The Kidnapped Girl (Bandits have taken over Fort Mercer and they're holding a farmer's daughter hostage. You and your crew will need to charge the fort and eliminate the gang with all firepower necessary - then fend off enemy reinforcements as you transport the girl by stagecoach safely to her home at Ridgewood Farm.)
- Take out all enemies on the front lines before rushing the gates. The easiest way to end up dead (fast) is to rush forward at the beginning of this mission. Gatling guns and armed enemies await you, and they aren't very happy you've decided to pay them a visit.
- Be careful when blowing the explosives on the front gates. Make sure all posse members are clear.
- The Winchester Repeater included with the Soldier class works well for the enemies inside Fort Mercer. It allows you to take out many of them before walking inside. Stand right outside the open gates and fire away, strafing left and right to use the cover of the walls to regenerate health.
- Stay alert when riding back to Ridgewood Farm as enemies will come at you from all directions. If you have to stop the stagecoach to revive a member of your posse, do it quickly as you could all end up dead in a matter of seconds...
The River (Ride a raft down river, taking out rebel encampments along the way until you reach the rebel stronghold of Nosalida and a final epic battle for the town's massive weapons caches. Watch out for Gatling gun-equipped enemy rafts.)
- As soon as your posse reaches land for the first time, run right along the lower part of the shoreline for about 15-20 seconds. Turn around and you'll have all of the enemies in front of you instead of surrounding you.
- Similar to the first part of the mission, run to the right and behind the collection of large rocks the second time your posse reaches land. This area is known as The Scratching Post.
- The Soldier class is recommended as the Winchester Repeater comes in very handy when firing at enemies as the raft travels down the river. The Miner class helps when in close quarters combat on land at The Scratching Post.
- Keep your posse together when you reach Nosalida. Enemies will be coming from all directions, and be mindful of other players' positions when you decide to blow up any TNT.
Walton's Gold (Walton's Gang have taken control of a mining camp rich with gold. Fight through the camp and load your mine cart with as much gold as you can carry, then get out as fast as you can - Walton's boys have rigged the place to blow!)
- Immediately run west with your posse to go around all of the enemies so that you can approach them closely with cover.
- Once inside the mine, blow any TNT crates and barrels to avoid future accidental player deaths. Just make sure that when you do this, you tell your posse.
- The Miner class really shows its power when using the Pump-action Shotgun on the enemies inside the mine, especially the cluster of enemies that stand near the mine cart. Dynamite also helps to take down any enemies manning Gatling Guns.
- Gather two bags of gold at a time and load them into the cart. The more gold you have in the cart, the more experience you will receive.