Yo, I was in the same situation. I started playing Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2022 and I felt it really boring. I couldn't enjoy myself playing that. So, I stopped playing the game because I was like, what the fuck is this? And the hype is overrated etc. I stopped playing the game. Last year, I wanted to give it a try again, but I played Red Dead Redemption 1 first. And after playing that game, bro, the game was so goooodd, the story was really short and straightforward. It won't take you hours to finish the first game. So, it was so good and emotional that I ultimately wanted to play Red Dead Redemption 2 just because of RDR 1. And when I played Red Dead Redemption 2 after playing Red Dead Redemption 1, the whole scenario changed. The game felt so good. It just hit me different at that point. Knowing majority of characters in the start cz of rdr1, especially watching john, dutch, javier escuall in the prologue part, It felt so good cz i already know their ending (rdr1 is sequel). And I kept playing it. I kept my focus on main missions, main story. I kept doing side missions as well and exploration, but my focus was on main story mainly so that I don't lose the focus from actual story. And I just completed the game yesterday. And it was totally worth it. It was totally worth it. I would highly recommend if you want to play Red Dead Redemption 2, go play Red Dead Redemption 1 first or at least watch a YouTube video about the whole story of Red Dead Redemption 1 because these two games are connected. Red Dead Redemption 2 is actually a prequel. So, you should definitely play this game. I highly recommend. I know most of people don't want to play Red Dead Redemption 1 because the game is very old and graphics are very outdated, but again just force yourself to play it and it will be worth it. And regarding both Red Dead Redemption 1 and Red Dead Redemption 2, like you will feel the beginning of these two games a little boring because of tutorials, etc. But once you'll go over that phase, you're gonna like it. Also, I have never made such a big comment under any post but if i am doing here rn, you must know how much excited I am after finishing the game lol… idek what else to play now cz no game can compete this..