What RDR2’s Iconic Western Towns Look Like In 8K With Ray Tracing

Red Dead Redemption 2 is an absolutely gorgeous game, with some of the most impressive graphics from the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One generation. The character models are realistic and convincingly display emotion, while the environments succeed in immersing the player in the American South of 1899. Some PC players have made Red Dead Redemption 2 even more visually striking by running the game at 8K resolution with ray-traced lighting – two upgrades that are especially noticeable in the game’s Western towns and cities.

Running Red Dead Redemption 2 in 8K with ray tracing is only possible on PC. Aside from the fact that no consoles can output 8K resolution, RDR2 doesn’t natively support ray tracing, so a mod is required. Officially supported community mods have come to select console games, most notably Bethesda titles like Skyrim and Fallout 4, but RDR2 has no such luxury and requires an impressive PC to get photorealistic visuals in 8K with ray tracing.

YouTube channel Digital Dreams specializes in modding and emulation for the purpose of increasing graphical fidelity in a variety of games. The videos of Red Dead Redemption 2 are perhaps the most impressive thanks to the mods building on the game’s already top-tier graphics and lighting. The expansive wilderness looks great with Red Dead Redemption 2 reshade mods, but the towns especially stand out from the base game in the Digital Dreams videos.

Red Dead Redemption 2’s Towns In 8K With Ray Tracing

Just after the five-minute mark in the video below, Arthur begins sauntering through the city of Saint Denis. The sequence takes place at night, in the rain. The street lights reflect off of puddles on the ground and the windows of the street car as it passes.

The next video, just after the three and a half minute mark, shows Arthur entering Van Horn Trading Post sometime after it’s rained, but in the midst of a dust storm. Clouds roll by overhead as sunset is nearing, bathing the entire town in a deep shade of orange.

This final video once again returns to Saint Denis at night, at around seven minutes and 40 seconds. This time there’s fog as Arthur walks through the streets, causing the gas-powered lamps to produce soft, glowing orbs that flicker. Arthur’s shadow stretches across the ground as he passes a streetlight before it dissolves into the dark.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is already one of the best-looking games out there, but it’s even more impressive with mods on PC. The base game that Rockstar delivered is already expansive, but mods have helped players not only increase the graphical fidelity but also add more content, such as giving RDR2 players customizable houses. Red Dead Redemption 2 is gorgeous, but the mods allowing for 8K and ray tracing take it to the next level.

Source: Digital Dreams/YouTube

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