• Guide

How to pre-load Red Dead Redemption 2 for PC

Rockstar's western epic is about to launch with a 109GB install on PC. Find out how to pre-load the game ahead of release.

Chris Jarrard

October 30, 2019 2:40 PM

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After leaving players hanging in the wind for an entire calendar year, the folks at Rockstar are finally releasing Red Dead Redemption 2 for the PC on November 5. The PC version of the game will come with exclusive new content and mouse support, but the biggest selling point will most assuredly be the improved graphics and unlocked framerate.

Rockstar recently released a PC trailer for Red Dead Redemption 2 that shows off the graphical upgrades in 4K resolution. Unlike the console versions, the PC will see native 4K resolution and the ability to run the game above the 30hz it was chained to for the last year. The minimum requirements for running the game on PC were also posted a few weeks back, so make sure your machine is up to the task. Once you have that business squared away, you can move on to pre-loading the game prior to its launch. Following this guide will guide you through the steps of how to pre-load Red Dead Redemption 2 on PC via the Rockstar Games Launcher.

How to pre-load Red Dead Redemption 2 on PC

First off, only customers who have pre-ordered the game via the Rockstar Games Launcher are currently eligible for pre-loading right now. While the game will be arriving on November 5 on the Epic Games Store, that version does not yet offer pre-loading. The Steam version will not be available until December 2019.

Once you purchase the game from the Rockstar Games Launcher, make sure to click the Red Dead Redemption 2 icon on the My Library pane on the left side of the launcher. A large grey PRE-LOAD NOW button will be in the middle of the screen. Click the button to get started.

You will be prompted to select an installation location for the Red Dead Redemption 2 game files. By default, the launcher will opt to install the game to C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games. You can select any other location or drive on your PC provided you have enough disk space to accommodate the installation. Under the drive path location bar, you will see a disk space checker that will let you know if your chosen installation location meets the disk space requirement of 109.47GB.

A pair of tickboxes are enabled by default that will create both desktop and Start Menu shortcuts to the game for you. You can untick these boxes if you don’t want the shortcuts. Once you click install, the game will begin downloading from Rockstar servers as an orange indicator will start to fill the lower bar of the launcher. The estimated download time will also be displayed. You can also choose to pause or cancel the pre-load.

Once the game finally releases next week, be sure to check back in with Shacknews for a comprehensive selection of guides and walkthroughs that will ensure you get the most out of your time larping as a cowboy.

Chris Jarrard

Contributing Tech Editor

Chris Jarrard likes playing games, crankin' tunes, and looking for fights on obscure online message boards. He understands that breakfast food is the only true food. Don't @ him.