Red Dead Redemption 2 Gun Guide: How to Reload, Holster, Fire Warning Shots, & More

Red Dead Redemption 2 Gun Guide: How to Reload, Holster, Fire Warning Shots, & More

After a brutal wait, Red Dead Redemption 2 is finally here. Like its predecessor, Red Dead Redemption 2 allows players to experience and explore an incredibly immersive wild west setting. If you’re here, you’re likely looking for some information about guns, and our Red Dead Redemption 2 gun guide will run you through the most important information about your weapons in the wild west.

How to Shoot Your Gun

Firing your weapon is simple enough. Press L1/LB to unholster your weapon, hold L2/LT to aim, and then R2/RT to fire. Keep in mind a couple of things though before you just start shooting like crazy.

The world of Red Dead Redemption 2 pays very close attention to what you do. If you fire your weapon out in the wilderness, it’s not really a big deal. However, if you fire your weapon in town, you’ll attract the attention of local lawmen, and any other people that didn’t take kindly to your actions.

Continuing to be a jerk around town may lead to you getting shot at, pursued by the law, and/or accumulating a bounty. So try to avoid doing so, unless you have a good reason to do so, or you’re just up for a shootout in the middle of town.

How to Reload in Red Dead Redemption 2

You’ll always want to keep your weapon reloaded before getting into a tussle with any of the unscrupulous folks you’ll be sure to run into over the course of Red Dead Redemption 2.

To reload your gun, simply press circle/B. You’ll start to fully reload your weapon. If you want to interrupt this process because you need to shoot at someone, you can. Aim your gun and start firing again. You won’t finish reloading obviously, but if you’re in a tight spot, it may be wise to go back to shooting. Those old-timey weapons don’t reload all that quickly.

How to Holster Your Gun

Knowing how to holster your weapon is extremely important. This is what will allow you to interact with strangers and NPCs in Red Dead Redemption 2 normally, instead of scaring them away by brandishing your weapon at them.

To holster your gun, just simply tap L1/LB quickly. Now when you press L2/LT, instead of pulling out and aiming your weapon, you’ll open up an NPC interaction menu on the bottom right hand side of your screen.

A fun trick that’s a bit hidden. If you double tab L1/LB, you’ll holster your weapon in a way reminiscent of your favorite wild west movies. Don’t overuse it though, save it for after rocking a group of enemies with Dead Eye for the full effect.

How to Fire Warning Shots and What They Do

Warning shots are a new feature in Red Dead Redemption 2. It is yet another way that you can interact with NPCs in game, somewhat non-violently.

To fire a warning shot, press L2/LT to bring out your weapon and then hit up on the directional pad. This will point your gun up. Fire your weapon with R2/RT, and voilà, the warning shot has been made.

This is a way that you can get people’s attention sternly, or to diffuse situations, without having to shoot at anyone and harm them. People will react to it in a variety of different ways. You might get the desired effect of taking control of a situation or having someone stop from running. Or, you might just trigger someone to feel threatened enough to run or shoot at you.

How to Fan Your Gun

Any game set in the wild west that doesn’t let you fan your gun needs to be sent back because it’s defective. Any self-respecting form of media set in the wild west is going to feature badass outlaws fanning guns. So of course, you can do it in Red Dead Redemption 2.

To fan your gun in Red Dead Redemption 2, all you need to do is tap R2/RT rapidly while your gun is unholstered while NOT aiming. This let’s you unload shots much faster than if you were to stop and aim with each bullet, but of course, it’s a lot less accurate.

Fanning your gun is effective if something is right in front of you, or for situations where you just want to be a little extra bad ass.

How to Dead Eye in Red Dead Redemption 2

If fanning your weapon is too difficult, you can always use Dead Eye to make your life easier. When you fire in Dead Eye mode, everything slows down dramatically, and you can lineup some perfect shots for as long as the meter has some energy. You can check your Dead Eye energy by looking at the meter in the bottom left hand corner onto of your compass (eye icon).

To use Dead Eye in Red Dead Redemption 2, take out your gun and aim it, and then, press R3. Now you’re in slow motion. Initially, you just need to aim your gun using the left analog stick to paint the targets you want to hit and then press R2 to fire them all.

Partway through the game though, you’ll be able to manually paint your targets. Once that happens, press R1/RB while you’re aiming at your target to paint it. This is better once you get the hang of it, as you’re not just firing a bunch of bullets at the same person.

Once all of your targets are lined up, press R2/RT to fire and watch the bullets fly. We’ve also broken this down in our how to duel effectively guide.

How to Stick Up & Rob People

Finally, you might want to know how to put your shooting to good use to make some money. The easiest way to stick up & rob people is to interact with strangers with L2/LT and then triggering the rob response. You can then pull out your gun and show them that you mean business by aiming it at them.

This also works on shopkeepers. Walking in and aiming your gun at them will let them know that you’re not there to buy hair tonic and beef jerky.

That’s all you need to know about your gun in Red Dead Redemption 2. In addition to our gun guide, we have plenty more that you can check out our on Red Dead Redemption 2 wiki page.