The years between the release of the first Red Dead Redemption and its prequel, Red Dead Redemption 2, were eight years. The vast difference in computing power alone is easily seen if you go back and play them today. I will be the first to admit I love the second’s gameplay mechanics way better than the first, but the story of the first one left its mark deeper in my thoughts. I vividly remember the first Red Dead setting a precedent for open-world games, following its 2010 release, only to be massively improved again in less than a decade. The year Red Dead Redemption 2 came out was the same year I finally turned twenty-one, so it was an impactful year for me. Much changed for me the year leading up to the second’s release. I had recently gone through a messy breakup with my girlfriend at the time. After dating for almost three years, and given how the break-up went, an escape into the life of Arthur Morgan was exactly what I needed.
I will be the first to say that, even though subjectively, John Marston holds the spot higher than Arthur does. I can also look at it through an objective lens, too. When it comes down to it, Arthur Morgan embodies the Wild West way better than John ever has. This may be because Rockstar had a better grasp of the setting for the prequel. The Wild West abhorred the coming change and laws that were arriving from the West. John tried to keep up with the times and do what’s best for his wife and kid, and abandon his life of lawlessness. Arthur, well, he could never change; it is not the man he was. I usually find myself as a mix of both men when it comes to upcoming changes, hesitant but curious at first, and I do not think these games influenced this in any way, just maybe helped reinforce what I already believed. This will be another one of the less emotional pieces and more on the analytical side.
The difference in how I found out the game was coming out is a funny parallel to this as well. In my childhood, games just randomly appeared or had to be sought out. Now you are bombarded by ads all over the internet. I have no clue how long Red Dead Redemption was announced before I found out about it, and fifteen years ago is hard to keep track of. The second title, though it was merely hours after it was announced, I was aware of its presence. I remember the trailer being released while I was at my friend’s house. We both gathered around his iPhone to watch the cinematic beauty. I can specifically remember the dumbfounded look I had while watching it. The graphics looked so beautiful, and the depiction of mundane Western life throughout was masterfully done. Something was immediately unsettling me while watching it with my best friend, though, and I think it was the hindsight and pattern recognition I have for stories in video games. I turned to my friend as the scene where the posse rides out into the great plains at the end of the trailer. The next words out of my mouth were, the main character will die by the end of this prequel. I hate how right I was. I actually went back and rewatched the trailer again for this blog and came back with a wonderful easter egg I never would have discovered if I had not. Arthur Morgan’s first words to the public were, “When the time comes, you gotta run and don’t look back, this is over.” I believe he is talking to John Marston here, as that was Arthur’s ultimate goal in the end, to save John, Jack, and Abigail from the life of corruption under Dutch’s gang. Arthur says multiple times throughout that he is unworthy of redemption and deserves a brutal death for the deeds he has done.
I may have used my experiences and feelings from playing the first one to help me set expectations for the prequel. Being eight years older can change a person’s perspective, and I was not about to allow myself to get attached to another character just for them to die after a hundred hours together. I mentally prepared myself throughout the whole game for the inevitable event of Arthur’s death. So when that time of the cliff finally came, my anxiety alerted me that it was about to be that time. Thinking back to the moments leading up to both the deaths of the main characters, John’s may have been more emotionally charged for me because I was not prepared. The differences in how I reacted are something I actually digress on often to try and understand how my emotional grip has changed over the years. We all change as we grow; even Arthur could have changed for the better; he just needed a good guide to help him through.
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