Rather than lobbing more movie-style trailers of Red Dead Redemption our way, Rockstar has decided to release a series of gameplay videos. The first installment is now online.

RDR protagonist John Marston will have plenty to do in the Wild West besides hunt down the outlaw Bill Williamson. The four-minute video shows him fighting wild dogs, playing the knife game, searching for treasure, and playing cards. There are bounties for him to collect, too; at one point he chases a criminal down, lassos him, and then drags him back to town.

The game's powered by the RAGE engine that was used by Grand Theft Auto IV. Judging by the footage, it seems like they've managed to get more juice out of it. The textures and lighting effects both seem a bit sharper.

RDR's release date is currently set at April 27th. That's a lot of time so expect to see many more of these videos.