Gamers of all shapes, sizes, and types are (not so) patiently awaiting Red Dead Redemption 2, set to land tomorrow, 26 October. We’re already camping outside our local BT Games. In spirit.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is based in a giant open world, and although we haven’t experienced it yet, it’s likely the sheer scale might find many players getting lost in the woods. We will definitely have a mini-map, as well as a full-sized one, but navigating a huge world doesn’t have to be screen-swappingly tedious. The nice devs at Rockstar have designed a companion app that should help with that.

Rockstar Games announced the official Red Dead Redemption 2 Companion App for iOS in and Android devices, which will connect directly to your PS4 or Xbox One console while you’re playing the game. Nifty.

The handy guidance app is free to download, and will display the in-game map, allow you to set waypoints or mark areas of interest by tapping your (secondary) screen, and just help your exploration in general.

It’ll also give you access to the in-game journal, displaying character stats and information in real-time. And when the external information centre is connected, it’ll remove the game’s HUD from the main screen entirely, which gives you more space to admire the beautiful visuals.

This isn’t the first time that Rockstar have created a companion app for one of their games. Grand Theft Auto V had the iFruit app, which was used to train Franklin’s dog Chop and also to customise vehicles in the game. RDR2‘s version sounds a little more detailed than that.

The companion app will be available for download once the game launches, and it’s free on both iOS and Android. You won’t have to dole out more than the actual price of the game for this one.

Source: Rockstar Games