While the weapons may be authentic to the time period, the brothers have one skill that's pure Hollywood. It's called concentration mode, which allows you to slow down time and kill several enemies in one fell swoop. The mode is activated by pressing B on the pad, after which the screen turns black and white, and the game goes into slow motion. You guide the targeting reticle with the right thumbstick and use it to highlight all the enemies onscreen, which causes Ray to fire off a volley of bullets and kill all the enemies. Concentration mode is particularly useful in later sections of the game where you can be overrun with enemies. It's a nice change of pace from simply blasting away at enemies with your six-shooter, though using your weapons is very satisfying due to their accuracy and feel in combat. The concentration mode also comes into play at predetermined points in the game, where it is used to take down enemies in Unison. These points are signified by red highlights on the floor outside doors which Ray and Thomas must kick down to progress.

The game also has a unique automatic cover system. Going up to certain objects and walls puts you into cover mode, and you can lean out or over the object to blast at enemies using the right thumbstick. The system works well, and the game automatically senses when you're trying to use cover. When you do get hit, though, it's not an instant death. Instead, the game uses a damage system similar to that in Gears of War, where one or two hits are OK, but a sustained barrage of bullets will put you down. Health can be restored by simply getting back into cover and allowing your character to heal.

Later missions allow you to experience classic Western standoffs. They're very cinematic, with the camera hovering just above the hip next to your gun. You use the right thumbstick to edge your hand closer and closer to you gun, the goal being to keep your hand as near as possible to the gun without touching it. A bell sound signifies the time to draw your gun and take down your opponent. It's a very tense affair, and the music, along with the odd tumbleweed flying past, adds to the atmosphere.