Although the style of play for both characters is slightly different, controlling each character is broadly similar. Each can move forward and backward, can strafe left and right, can run, walk, sneak, and jump. Each shares an identical HUD, with the same information available to the player; currently held weapons, ammo count, a compass with objectives marked, and current health points. Both characters can single and/or dual wield six shooters, or single wield other weapons, such as rifles. Both characters can also lean to the left and right without moving from their current position, and can interact with certain objects, such as health pick-ups (in the Xbox 360 version, health automatically regenerates over time), ammo and dropped weaponry. The main differences between the two characters is that Ray is stronger and slower, he cannot jump as high as Billy, but he can kick heavy obstacles out of his way and take considerably more damage from enemy fire. Billy can move faster than Ray and is quieter, allowing him to sneak up on enemies. He can also grip onto ledges and pull himself up. Billy can also use two weapons Ray cannot - a whip, and a bow and arrow.
Weapons common to both characters include various types of six shooters, rifles and shotguns. Both characters can also throw dynamite and can start fires by throwing oil lamps. They are also both capable of hand-to-hand combat, although unlike Billy, Ray is able to pick up items such as chairs and boxes, and either throw them at enemies, or use them as melee weapons. Also unique to Ray is his ability to rapid fire a single six-shooter, a technique known as "fanning", and his ability to wield a Bible. If the player presses the shoot button for the hand holding the Bible, Ray will quote a random bible passage. In the Xbox 360 version, this will occasionally cause enemies to panic, and drop their weapons. Billy can use his whip for neutralizing aggressive animals, such as snakes and wolves, and for swinging across gaps by using tree branches. When he uses the bow and arrow, the game automatically goes into slow motion. This is the only weapon in the game that allows for silent kills, meaning Billy can kill enemies without alerting others to his presence.
Slow motion in Ray's levels is called "concentration mode". To enter this mode, Ray must holster both of his six shooters. During combat, when he draws either one, concentration mode is automatically activated, and the game goes into slow motion, with two targeting reticles appearing on either side of the screen, with each moving towards the center. The player cannot control the movement of either reticle, or move their character during concentration mode, but they can control the positioning of the screen, allowing them to maneuver Ray's vision so as to position the reticles over an enemy. They can also shoot independently from either their left or right gun, or both simultaneously. Ray's levels also involve numerous gun duels between Ray and one or more enemies. In these shootouts, the player must wait for a countdown, at which point the enemy will reach for their weapon. Only then can Ray draw his own gun and fire. Movement during duels is limited to leaning left and right.
Billy's levels involve a degree of stealth. Unlike Ray, Billy can move totally silently whilst in sneak mode, and can hide in bushes and shadows. When he does so, he is hidden from enemy sight, and his character icon on the HUD is blacked out to show he cannot be seen. Often, even if he is seen, if he can hide quickly enough, he will escape permanent detection. Both Billy and Ray can also ride horses during the game, from which they can shoot, jump large distances and enter gallop mode. Gallop mode can only be maintained for a certain amount of time, however, before the horse becomes tired.
Multiplayer
The game also features multiplayer mode (available via LAN and online on PC, and via System Link and Xbox Live on Xbox 360), with several gameplay types. Both the Windows and the Xbox 360 versions feature "Deathmatch" mode, "Skirmish" mode (team deathmatch), "Robbery" mode (the team designated as "Outlaws" must find the hidden gold and return it to an "escape zone" without being caught by the team designated as "Lawmen"), and "Gold Rush" mode (gold is spread over the map; at the end of a specified time, the player who has collected the most gold wins). The Xbox 360 version also features "Capture the Bag" mode (each team has a bag of gold. To win, one team must capture the other team's bag and return it to their own base), "Wanted" mode (one player is randomly designated as the "wanted" player, and other players can only score points by killing this particular player. Once the wanted player is killed, the player who killed them then becomes the wanted player. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins), and "Famous Events" mode (game scenarios based on real-life events, such as the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, the Wilcox Train Robbery, the last raid of the Dalton Gang, and scenarios based on robberies committed by Jesse James and Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch).
