'Red Dead Redemption 2' release date, news: Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick says timing is right for game to come out

A screenshot from the "Red Dead Redemption 2" trailer. Rockstar Games

"Red Dead Redemption 2" probably doesn't need any more hype. The anticipation has been palpable especially after Rockstar Games decided to drop hints in a not-so-subtle way. Well, people have been waiting for the announcement, and when it finally came the gaming community sat up and took notice. The timing was just perfect.

Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick was at an MKM Partners event this week, and according to GameSpot, he spoke about how pleased he was with the gaming community's reaction to the announcement. Rockstar and Take-Two know gamers have been waiting for an official announcement, but they never knew the trailer would garner that many views. Zelnick stated that the timing was just right for the company to come up with "Red Dead Redemption 2."

"The conventional wisdom was of course that a western wouldn't work," he said while discussing the first "Red Dead Redemption." "We took a different point of view, which is that very occasionally westerns capture the imagination of the public. When we launched Red Dead, it did. And those times were right for that. And I think the times are right for a big, sprawling, optimistic view of America again — and that's not meant to be cute."

Zelnick said "Red Dead Redemption 2" is going to offer "incredible emotional depth."

"You can expect there to be great story elements and great gameplay elements," he added.

Meanwhile, reports have mentioned that "Red Dead Redemption 2" may actually be a prequel to "Red Dead Redemption." Well, people have been saying this for months now, but this has never been confirmed. Remember that map leak earlier this year? Could it be legitimate after all?

"Red Dead Redemption 2" is scheduled to come out in fall 2017. The game will be available on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Rockstar has yet to confirm the availability of the game on PC.

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