A Lot of You Called in Sick to Play Red Dead Redemption 2, According to Social Analytics

We’ve all done it at some time or another. A great game comes out, and we either schedule some time away from work, or we- *COUGH* call in and- *COUGH* oh boy, I think I’m- *Cough cough* I think I’m coming down with something. Sorry, I’m going to have to cut this article short, I’m not feeling quite myself today—which also just happens to be the Red Dead Redemption 2 release day—and have to go home to uh, sleep. Yeah, that’s it. Sleeping off this really bad case of the sick that I have.

PS4 Notification: Chandler Wood is now Online. Playing Red Dead Redemption 2.

According to the social analytics firm Fizziology (via VentureBeat), a whole lot of you called in sick to work today in order to get your Red Dead Redemption 2 fix. Or at least you’ve talked about calling in sick on social media. After analyzing more than 800,000 tweets about Red Dead Redemption 2, Fizziology came to the conclusion that 1.5 times more people were taking the day off for this game than for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. Despite great sales and reception for both God of War and Spider-Man, Red Dead Redemption 2 beat both of them out on the “sorry boss, I can’t come in today” scale by more than three times. And it was also noted that people just weren’t that hyped for Shadow of the Tomb Raider. Red Dead Redemption 2 cleared it with 12 times the number of “sick” folks playing that game on release day.

This isn’t actually a polling of short-handed managers though, so we have no way of knowing if people followed through with their claims to call in sick. Maybe it was just wishful thinking for their social media audiences, and they’ve been chomping at the bit all day at work, knowing that either a package awaits them or the digital version is already downloaded and ready to go. It also paints a potential early look at sales for the game, especially with the continued frequency of Red Dead-related tweets since the game’s launch. Fizziology says RDR2 mentions are averaging about 14,000 per hour.

The game is just that good though. While we don’t know the official commercial impact quite yet, Red Dead Redemption 2 has officially set itself critically as the highest rated game of the generation (and among the upper echelons of the greatest games of all time). Our own review called it a genre-redefining game that raises the bar for video games. If you were planning on getting the Platinum Trophy, however, you’ll have to wait for Red Dead Online to release next month. Some of the trophies require the multiplayer to obtain.

Did you take a Red Dead Redemption 2 sick day? Where does your boss think you are right now? Hey, where did all of the PSLS writers go? Guess they must have all come down with that cold that I hear is going around.

Best Movies and TV Shows Like Red Dead Redemption 2

If you want to stay on the lawless frontiers of Red Dead Redemption 2, make sure to check out these movies and TV shows when you're not playing the game.

The Hateful Eight

A snowstorm forces a group of people together into a cabin, but nobody is quite who they seem, and their differences result in some bloody conflict. There's something about a roomful of charming killers that really makes The Hateful Eight speak to a lot of the themes in Red Dead Redemption 2.

3:10 to Yuma

A poor rancher takes up a quest to get a legendary outlaw on a train to Yuma prison before his gang can rescue him. One man just trying to make it in a difficult world, while the other is a charming, honorable, and unpredictable outlaw. This film is one of my favorites, and immediately calls to mind Red Dead Redemption 2.

Django Unchained

A salve turned bounty hunter sets upon a Southern plantation house, with some glorious twists and turns that are sure to delight. It's a brutal story about a means to an end, a tale of vengeance. It's not always easy to cheer for someone doing something bad, but when it's for the right reasons, Django Unchained and Red Dead Redemption 2 find themselves very similar to one another.

Justified

A modern day officer of the law does his job with a 19th century flair. It might not take place at the turn of the century, but the themes and style present certainly make Justified feel a lot like Red Dead Redemption 2.

True Grit

A young girl has her grit tested as she hunts down her father's killer with the help of a disgruntled US Marshall. A true Western tale that has everything from vengeance to redemption, worthy of being on your Red Dead Redemption 2 watchlist.

Firefly

Firefly is a Western in space, and at its heart is Mal and his charming gang of outlaws. It's just as much a story about the people as it is about the setting, which speaks to Red Dead Redemption 2's ensemble cast of a gang that's more like a family.

Godless

A coal mine accident kills nearly every man in small town, leaving the women to fight for themselves against some wily businessmen and a gang of outlaws trying to find a rogue member of the group. While it has something of a slow start, Godless is one of the best portrayals of the period that I've seen and deserves its comparison to Red Dead Redemption 2.

Sons of Anarchy

The Sons of Anarchy are just like outlaw gangs of old, only they traded their horses for motorcycles. The Sons are family, living life just outside of the law to make ends meet in a world that doesn't quite understand them. If that doesn't speak to what Red Dead Redemption 2 is all about, I don't know what does.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Three prisoners escape from a chain gang and set out on a quest that takes them through a number of different events. While it might be a little bit later than when Red Dead Redemption 2 takes place, the sheer variety of things they encounter reminds one of RDR2's vast and varied open-world.

Longmire

This is another series that takes place in the modern day, but its themes are very Western in nature, pitting the outlaws against those that would maintain law and order. 

The Magnificent Seven

This one is a classic, or a remake of a classic, depending on which one you watch! How could it not end up on this list?

The Revenant

The American Frontier wasn't all about the conflict between men. Sometimes it was a conflict against nature itself. The Revenant is the true story of a man attacked by a bear and left for dead. Red Dead Redemption 2 has a diverse and living ecosystem of flora and fauna, so there will be as much fighting against the beauty of the environment as these is fighting against other outlaws and the lawmen that would bring your gang to justice.

The Walking Dead

When the last vestiges of modern society fade away, we'll find ourselves back in that tenuous time where the lines of legality where blurry, and people did what they had to just to survive. The Walking Dead eliminates society as we know it, taking us back to that era. Or maybe it's just the accents that remind us of Red Dead Redemption 2.

Lonesome Dove

This might be a case of "the book's better," but Lonesome Dove is an incredible and detailed look at the American Wild West. If you want a work that gets the feeling and immersion of the frontier like Red Dead Redemption 2, don't look much further than Lonesome Dove.

[Source: Fizziology via Venturebeat]

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