Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2) is a truly brilliant game, from its graphics and gameplay to its setting, but nothing binds it all together quite like the game’s narrative. 

Developed by Grand Theft Auto creator Rockstar Games, it is set in the Old West in 1899 and follows the story of the Van der Linde outlaw gang and their downfall during the turbulent collapse of the Western lifestyle.

RDR2 starts slowly, introducing fan-favourite returning characters from the previous game, such as John Marston and Dutch van der Linde, but the real centre of attention is the new protagonist, Arthur Morgan.

A hardened, brutish outlaw enforcing gang leader Dutch’s will, Arthur was not entirely well received upon the release of the game’s trailer. Fans wanted more of RDR1 protagonist John Marston and now had to learn to love an unknown entity, despite getting the prequel they had desperately wanted.

Through the main story and optional side missions, we, the audience, gain an understanding of Arthur and his psyche through extensive cutscenes.

He is more than a brutal enforcer. He is a troubled man looking out for the gang, his only family and purpose in the world as he sees it.

This is reinforced through his care for Jack Marston, acting more like a father figure to him than John Marston does for a large majority of the game. We learn about the difficult choices Arthur has made through his surrogate father Dutch, former fiancée Mary, and one of the most crucial aspects of the story: the honour system.

The world of Red Dead can be a violent, unforgiving environment, as expected from any 18+ shooter game.

The honour system, whereby Arthur gains honour for good deeds such as helping other characters, doing chores, and giving positive conversation responses, and loses honour for violence, rudeness, and unnecessary killing, allows the player to shape the story as they please.

This is crucial to RDR2’s storytelling, as cutscenes and interactions throughout the world change based on high or low honour, with one moment in particular standing out.

Through Arthur’s brutal deeds, he contracts tuberculosis while harassing a debt out of a man, with one single cough changing the entire game and Arthur’s perspective on life.

Through his eventual diagnosis, we see a man with a renewed outlook, realising his limited time should shape his actions: the high honour outlook.

If the player has low honour, the walk through the beautifully crafted fictional city of Saint Denis becomes dark and desolate, with the game’s vibrant colour palette absent, reflecting Arthur having wasted his life robbing, killing, and serving a failing father figure in Dutch.

By the climax of the game’s events, it is clear Arthur has become disillusioned with the gang, focusing his attention on helping those who want to leave escape safely, while witnessing Marston’s abandonment by Dutch and the law closing in on them.

This is where honour becomes important again, with the player given a small amount of time to change their ways before the ending is set in stone based on high or low honour.

The solemn final ride to the gang’s campsite and the final cutscene overlooking a sunrise are determined by honour.

Whilst many consider the high honour ending to be canon, in which Arthur accepts his death after helping a reformed John Marston and his family escape, the real ending is ultimately up to the player.

Do they make Arthur greedy and money-driven until the end, despite his impending death and physical weakness, or do they help their proclaimed brother escape betrayal and the brutality of 1899 law enforcement?

No matter what happens, players came to love Arthur Morgan.

The final cinematic, regardless of player choice, will always represent who Arthur was, or who he became. Whilst how he meets his end is completely up to the player, his death transforms RDR2 into a cinematic masterpiece and one of the greatest works of fiction ever created, despite beginning as a brutal game about robbing and thievery.

Image credit: unsplash