Your Morality is Questionable
Red Dead Redemption 2 appears to take place right around the time when the Dutch van der Linde gang starts to lose their moral fiber. Yet even as things start to unravel, his crew appears to remain fiercely loyal. In trailer #2, Dutch asks the main character, Arthur Morgan, if he has his back, and he replies back “Always, Dutch.” We see that loyalty confirmed as he acts out all manner of violence at Dutch’s command in trailer #3.
Indeed, we see Morgan threaten murder, ambush a train, engage in general acts of mischief, and the trailer today just added armed robbery onto the pile. Sure, there might be a “justification” for all this, but considering what we know about the man leading this gang, the group’s moral compass is likely way off – probably unbeknownst (at least initially) to Morgan and some of the other members.
This would be quite the change in tone from the first game. Sure, you could play John Marston from Red Dead Redemption as a brutal outlaw, but the game’s narrative seemed to constantly nudge you the direction of being an ex-cowboy that was reluctant to mix it up because of his terrible past, and at his heart, was a good guy. He wanted to close out that part of his life (violently, sure) and then move on. Similar to Niko Bellic from GTA IV.
Morgan from Red Dead 2 appears to genuinely enjoy the life he is currently living, and unless we’re playing as a straight villain in this game, it probably will take some time for him to realize the error of his ways. A scene in the third trailer hints to this as we see another character try to reassure Morgan by saying “brothers make mistakes,” alluding to something regrettable bothering Morgan.
We’ll Follow Dutch van der Linde’s Descent Into Madness
It looks clear after three trailers that we are a follower not a leader in this motley crew of cowboys – at least at the start of the game, anyway. We’re a member of Dutch’s crew, and we know from Red Dead Redemption what the fate of the gang is. The government is going to win this battle over the wild west, and it’s a fact that eventually breaks Dutch’s spirit.
Expect to watch Dutch slowly lead everyone in his gang down a path of no return. He will likely justify one increasingly brutal move after another in order to preserve his dream of a truly “free” state of living. Like a cornered animal, he’ll do whatever it takes to preserve himself and his ideals. If we didn’t already know that Morgan was going to be the protagonist, you’d be forgiven for thinking this string of three trailers was about the villains of Red Dead Redemption 2. It’s been that dark.
We’ll Probably Butt Heads with John Marston at Some Point
We’d suspected that Marston, the previous game’s protagonist would have some kind of role in the plot of Red Dead Redemption 2, but now it appears to have been confirmed. That’s certainly him being manhandled – check out the scars.
If you played Red Dead Redemption, you know Marston has his issues with Dutch. Marston is eventually left for dead in a robbery gone wrong, which leaves him with a sour taste in his mouth, as one would imagine. Although forced to act against his former gang under duress in Red Dead Redemption, Marston seems to have plenty of justification for doing what he did anyway. We see what kind of shape Dutch’s gang is in by the end of Red Dead Redemption.
Considering how loyal Morgan appears to be to Dutch in the trailers revealed so far, and knowing that Marston will eventually be abandoned and left for dead, expect to see some bad blood boil up to the surface between Morgan and Marston.
That bad blood could also involve Abigail, Marston’s wife, whom he met while running with Dutch’s gang (and who might have made an appearance in trailer #3; we’re not 100% sure yet that it’s her, though). She slept around with the members of the gang, and that might include Morgan too. So maybe she’ll play an important part in Red Dead Redemption 2 as well?
Fire Might be a Theme of Some Sort
A consistent theme throughout all three trailers is the appearance and/or alluding to fire and burning. Trailer #1 sees Morgan looking over at some kind of fiery aftermath. In trailer #2, he is seen walking away from a burning building. And finally, in trailer #3, a speech about fire sets the tone for the whole trailer. The speech doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, at least not yet, but there are certainly lots of references to fire in all three trailers.
What does it actually mean? It’s hard to say right now, but the two obvious points jump out: fire could be a metaphorical reference to the end of the wild west, as it comes burning and crashing down when the government slowly starts to wrestle control away. Or, it could be literal; these scenes and references to fire could be hinting to a fiery climax that takes place at some point in the game.
What are your Red Dead Redemption 2 theories? Let us know in the comments below. Check out our in-depth breakdown of the latest story trailer here.
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