It doesn’t take long for most Red Dead Redemption 2 players to notice that the game’s version of America in 1899 doesn’t quite align with the real world. Most notably, its map is full of states that never existed. There are several locations which are clear stand-ins for real-world cities that are notably never mentioned in-game, like Saint Denis and New Orleans.
Red Dead Redemption 2 fans have already mapped the game’s fictional states over their rough real-world counterparts, but the small differences between the Red Dead universe and real history gives the storytellers some interesting flexibility. Red Dead 2 takes place in an alternate timeline with some departures from history that rarely come to the forefront of the game’s main story, but which allow it to be told.
The Presidents
In 1899, Red Dead 2’s America is overseen by the fictional President MacAlister. He is the president who, in 1897, finalized the state borders of New Austin, New Hanover, Lemoyne, Ambarino, and West Elizabeth. By 1907 it’s revealed that MacAlister has been assassinated. Based on the time he was in power and the fate of this unfortunate president, he seems to be based on William McKinley, who was assassinated in 1901.
Strangely, however, William McKinley himself appears to have also been president at some point in the Red Dead 2 timeline. He can be seen alive and well on variants of the ten-dollar bills players can find in-game, identified by name on the note. Since the real McKinley came into office in 1897, when MacAlister is already in office in the Red Dead world, it means that Red Dead 2’s McKinley must have been president at an earlier time than his real-world counterpart.
MacAlister isn't the only fictional American president who shows up in the game. The Prominent Americans cigarette card set also depict President Hardin and President Fisher, and though Fisher appears to be based on President Van Buren based on his looks, it isn't made clear when either man served in office.
The Wars
It’s also not clear if Red Dead 2’s McKinley was also assassinated, but MacAlister’s Vice President and successor Thaddeus Waxman is a clear stand-in for Theodore Roosevelt. Thaddeus Waxman is said to have led American troops to victory in Guarma at the Battle of San Juan Hill. This is a direct reference to Theordore Roosevelt resigning from his post as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1898 so that he could raise a regiment that would become known as the Rough Riders, who fought in the Spanish-American War.
Saint Denis also makes it clear that the Civil War still took place in the Red Dead timeline, with the fictional Battle of Scarlett Meadows in 1864 standing in for the twenty-five major battles that took place in Louisiana during the war. Bill Williamson is mentioned to have fought in the American Indian Wars, and while the details of the Spanish-American War were changed, the Battle of San Juan Hill was a real battle that took place in Cuba, not Guarma.
Saint Denis And GTA
There are some other real-world events reflected in Red Dead’s alternate world as well. The newspaper article “Lawman Found Dead” states that an officer named Henry Jenkins was killed by gunshot wound to the head after investigating Angelo Bronte.
Although this can simply be read as a hint regarding Bronte’s brutality, it’s also a grim reference to a dark chapter in New Orleans history. The murder of the city’s police chief David Hennessy in 1891 led to the lynching of eleven Italian Americans, with the murderers claiming that both Hennessy’s death and the victims were connected to the Italian mob. It’s unclear whether there were similar reprisals in Saint Denis.
Although the worlds share some similarities, fan theories that Red Dead 2 takes place in the same timeline as Grand Theft Auto are largely discredited by mentions of New York and California in Red Dead, which were replaced by Liberty City and San Andreas in the GTA universe. Even still, Red Dead 2’s parallel history keeps itself relatively close to reality while still giving Rockstar enough flexibility to tell its own story.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
