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‘Red Dead Redemption 2’ outdraws its predecessor, ships 17M copies

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Apparently everyone wants to be a cowboy, baby. It took Red Dead Redemption 2 a mere eight days to surpass the lifetime sales of the original game, which sold right around 15 million copies. Sales for Rockstar Games’ universally praised outlaw simulator are booming, with more than 17 million copies shipped to stores, according to publisher Take-Two Interactive (via Variety).

We already knew Red Dead Redemption 2 was flying off shelves, of course. On launch weekend, RDR2 grossed $725 million — an all time high for the entertainment industry. But the fact that Red Dead Redemption 2 has already outgunned its predecessor is quite astonishing. The original game was also one of the most highly rated titles of its era.

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With the holiday season right around the corner, it stands to reason that Red Dead Redemption 2 will sell many millions more copies in 2018 alone.

Another reason why Red Dead Redemption 2 is poised to have a massive holiday season? the impending arrival of Red Dead Online, the multiplayer portion of the experience that is set to enter beta later this month. Speaking with Variety, Take-Two Interactive Chairman Strauss Zelnick confirmed that Red Dead Online will arrive in November, but we still don’t know exactly when.

Red Dead Redemption 2 Launch Trailer

Zelnick also expressed his support for Rockstar Games’ culture following the prelaunch controversy about working conditions at the renowned studio. Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser ignited the conversation surrounding “crunch” by mentioning 100-hour work weeks in an interview with Vulture. Rockstar employees soon were given permission to speak about their experiences at the company on social media, with the general consensus being that crunch — the extra time employees of video game studios put in to meet deadlines — exists at Rockstar, but it’s improving.

It doesn’t seem like the negative attention Rockstar received prior to launch has affected sales, at least not significantly.

If you’ve recently become one of the millions of new cowboys, we’d like to help make your time inside RDR2‘s majestic open world even better. For tips and tricks, make sure to check out our beginner’s guide. If you’re feeling the urge to go off the rails, you could always use some cheat codes. We also have guides for horses, fishing, and fast travel.

Correction: An earlier version of this article stated RDR2 had sold 17 million copies. Take-Two has shipped 17 million copies to stores.

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Steven Petite
Steven Petite
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Steven is a writer from Northeast Ohio currently based in Louisiana. He writes about video games and books, and consumes…
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