Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare

 Review

Common Sense Media says

While not for kids, this zombie shooter is well-made.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare is most definitely not for kids. Gamers can kill enemies with many different kinds of weapons -- usually resulting in bloody and gory battles with zombies; blood spurts out of fallen enemies and at times, body parts can be severed or seen strewn on the ground. Players will hear strong profanity and sexual references, too. The game is very online-centric, which opens up other concerns such as interacting with strangers and hearing profanity spoken by other players.This bundle includes previous downloadable add-ons to Red Dead Redemption,
including the "Legends and Killers Pack," "Liars and Cheats Pack" and
the "Undead Nightmare Pack," along with a new single-player story and other extras. This is a stan-alone game  -- you do not need to own the original Red Dead Redemption.

  • The purpose of the game is to kill flesh-eating zombies. Sure, they're "undead" (and at times, eating other people), but killing is the name of the game.
  • The "hero" of the game, John Maston, who is a former outlaw himself, vows to protect his family from the undead until a cure can be found. While his intentions may be noble, he kills thousands of zombies with a myriad of weapons, making him not a good role model.
  • Those who played Red Dead Redemption will pick up on the game controls quite intuitively, but even those who have not should find this action/adventure fairly easy to learn. Many online gamers are skilled, however, so be sure to tackle the single-player campaign first.
  • An extremely violent game that has you killing thousands of zombies, "undead" animals and other creatures. This shooter lets you wield shotguns, rifles, dynamite and holy water -- to name a few weapons -- and you can see body parts fly and blood spray when killing enemies. Some slow-motion sequences, such as head shots, add to the gory drama. In one scene you will see a zombie eating blow-up body parts.  
  • Some sexual references in dialogue include "I'll give you a quickie later" and "You're a voyeur."  Some female characters are dressed suggestively, but there is no nudity.
  • The game has some occasional but strong language, including f--k and s--t, as well as words such as "bitch," "hell," "damn" and "bastard."
  • Not applicable.

What's it about?

You play as John Marston, a former outlaw who awakens at his farmhouse to see hoards of the undead have taken over towns and outposts across the American frontier. Marston traverses the Old West to find and kill these zombies with every weapon he could find. RED DEAD REDEMPTION: UNDEAD NIGHTMARE includes previous downloadable add-ons to Red Dead Redemption, including the "Legends and Killers Pack," "Liars and Cheats Pack" and the "Undead Nightmare Pack," along with a new single-player story, bonus multiplayer maps and various co-op and competitive game types to tackle online against human opponents.


Is it any good?

 

Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare is a good game, but it certainly isn't for kids, tweens, or young teens. This gory shooter offers a lot of "bang" for not a lot of bucks ($29.99), including a thrilling single-player campaign featuring undead frontiersmen and animals (and mythical creatures, such as The Four Horses of the Apocalypse), explosive events, new weapons and areas, and much more. The multiplayer component is really where this game shines, though, with many different kinds of games to play -- including an all-new co-op survival mode called Undead Overrun, a new free roam mode called Land Grab and even a fun game of online poker. You can also play as characters from Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Revolver in the various online games. While bloody and gory, this game is well made, looks great, and offers a ton of gameplay.

Online interaction: The game can be played online, with full unmoderated speech support, therefore players can interact verbally (and virtually) with strangers and listen to profanity. This game supports multiple online modes, including co-op and competitive missions. There is also an online poker game.


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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about the fascination of zombies in pop culture. Dozens of movies, TV shows, books, games, comics and other entertainment mediums feature zombies these days. What's the appeal?

  • In video games, is killing zombies less controversial than killing
    other humans? Do you feel more gratification killing the flesh-eating
    undead?


This review was written by Marc Saltzman
Adult
April 4, 2011
 
Reviewed by the overprotective, fine for 13+
I am 36 with two 14 year old boys who love the game, at first I was against it, but after they showed it to me when I allowed them to rent it, I was wrong. The violence is constant, but nothing too awful, like call of duty zombies, some words that I hat are used such as s***, I did not hear the f word throughout the game, there are also hardly no sex references in the game, anyway, nothing real world mature kids can't handle.13+

Flag as inappropriate 
Parent of 16 year old
January 15, 2011
 
Good for teens
This is a game that try's to accurately depict a very violent, and unstable period of time. Let it be known that there are messages hidden under the violence (of which there are admittedly large amounts) some of which have to do with the gray line between right and wrong, as well as the way that the government, and the general population view reformed criminals. If you take time to explain some of the deeper meanings to your child there are undeniable benefits to letting them play this game. The Undead Nightmare DLC is an excellent look at how, in reality the actions of most people are little more than that of a reanimated corpse. Beyond this it is an excellent way to have your children overcome some preconceived notions about different types of people. By letting them play any game where social statuses are severely redefined allows an excellent chance to show that under all the societal boundaries that we put up we are not all that different. There are still things that you need to consider when allowing your children to play this or any other game, mainly being is your child able to look at a game and see beyond what is at face value, and if not are they at least able to handle what is present to them and put it to use in a beneficial way. Overall, I feel that after the age of 15, it is permissible to allow any children to play this game, as long as they are able to see deeper meanings, or understand that the actions that are permissible in video games are not necessarily accepted in real life. Despite how I feel, it is ultimately based upon the maturity of the child that you have raised.

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Parent of 15 year old
January 6, 2011
 
good for olders
I love this game, me and my son play it all the time. Sure, its bloody, stabbing shooting and burning zombies and innocent people. but its real fun so if you love zombies and shooters, get this game and play it up! if you are interested in multiplayer, this game has it but no zombies in multiplayer. (Accept for one outfit)

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 15 years old
December 30, 2010
 
e.g. Perfect for teens
i love this game, sure its violent but no kids will go on a massacre. if your kid is mature enough for this content, i recommoned it. 14 and older.

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Kid, 13 years old
December 24, 2010
 
Cool add on
Not as good as the original but still one of the best games I have ever played!12+

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Kid, 12 years old
December 26, 2010
 
A violent cowboy game is for older kids
This game is a first person shooter that is not cool for kids my age. It has a amazing story, and the characters are likable, unique , and fun. Overall the game is great! The violence is pretty high though. Players can shoot off body parts of the zombies with tons of realistic blood and gore. I could handle it, but in a way it is not good for kids my age. I got at gamestop on the first day, and it was worth the money. There is some "bad words" in the game that I heard like: the F word, the D word, a**, bas**d, sh*t, and the B word. Some sexual stuff in there too. There is multiplayer in the game so you can talk to people. So that makes the language extra extra extra bad. The game is really fun though, and admit it is more of a older persons game, but I had tons of fun playing!

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Adult
April 16, 2011
 
Listen Parents, I let my kids play this game. its a mini game from the red dead redemption game. I would say 14 yr olds and up

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 14 years old
May 29, 2011
 
Great game, but some stuff to take note of.
This game is really fun (especcialy if your into anything with zombies in it). At first I was worried because of the rating on the back, but it turns out there's no nudity. There is some sexual references, and suggestive clothes, but that's it. At certain times the game can be very bloody, and you will definitely see blood and gore! You can blow zombies' body parts off, and it can be seen in slow-motion. As for the language, there is some strong language used, but it's nothing compared to games like Call of Duty Black Ops, or Battlefield.

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Teen, 15 years old
May 15, 2011
 
How does killing zombies not make you a good role model? He saves the world from certain annahilation.

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Teen, 17 years old
March 19, 2011
 
Perfect for tweens and young teens
Look people its just zombies it is not evan close to the amount of content Red dead redemption. If you are not aloud to get red dead redmption this a perfect game for you. I do no it has lots of blood but most kids from the age of 11 to 13 can handle blood.

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This review was written by Marc Saltzman
Platforms:Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Available online?Available online
Genre:First Person Shooter
Developer:Rockstar Games
Release date:November 23, 2010
Price:$29.99
ESRB rating:M for Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language

This review was written by Marc Saltzman

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ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

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