How to Win Horseshoes on "Red Dead Redemption"

John Marston must trek through forbidding terrain in "Red Dead Redemption."

"Red Dead Redemption," Rockstar's epic Western sandbox game starring haunted cowboy John Marston, gives players a living and breathing landscape to explore, complete with ghost towns, wild cougars, Mexican mesas and bandits waiting around every bend in the road. Marston can play a number of games, including horseshoes. This is a game on which Marston can gamble. His opponent will improve when the stakes are raised, so learning how to win horseshoes is an important step toward growing Marston's wealth.

Instructions

1. Get on your horse, the train or a carriage, and travel to either MacFarlane's Ranch, Rathskeller Fork or Las Hermanas; the first two are in the United States, while Las Hermanas lies across the San Luis River in Mexico. Find the game of horseshoes either by looking on the map or looking around for a horseshoe pit. Approve the person standing by the horseshoe pit and pressing the prompted button on your controller.

2. Play through the tutorial to get instructions about the controls for the game. Enter a bet using the analog stick; your opponent will be more difficult to defeat if the stakes are higher. When given the horseshoe, press the camera zoom button, L2 on the PS3 or LT on the Xbox 360, to aim the camera directly behind John Marston. Move the analog stick horizontally until the horseshoe stake is centered directly between the two ends of the horseshoe. Release the trigger to revert to the normal camera angle.

3. Move the analog stick vertically and watch Marston swing his arm back and forth. Notice the force gauge in the lower-left corner of the screen; the red bar will climb the white measure if you begin the swing from a wound-up position. Practice swinging the horseshoe several times without releasing, so that the red bar climbs to exactly the halfway mark on the white gauge. Try winding up and pressing the throw trigger at this halfway position and note where the horseshoe lands. Repeat these actions, including zooming and aiming the camera, with the second horseshoe.

4. Win the game of horseshoes by landing your horseshoes closer to the stake than does your opponent; you score a point for every horseshoe closer than an opponent's horseshoe, and three points for a ringer. Watch your opponent as he throws, as this decreases his accuracy. Play until you reach 11 points; as long as you are at least 2 points ahead of your opponent, you win the bet.

Tips & Warnings

• Play through the tutorial several times if you consistently lose games. Be patient; horseshoes is perhaps the most difficult mini-game in Red Dead, but once you get over the learning curve, you will make money.

References

• Gamer Zines: Red Dead Redemption -- A Guide To Mini-Games -- Horseshoes
• Gamepressure: Additional Activities - Horseshoes

Resources

• Rockstar Games: Red Dead Redemption