Red Dead Redemption 2 will be out for 2 years come October of this year, but it is still Rockstar Games' latest epic title. The interest may wane over the course of the next few months, especially leading up to any Grand Theft Auto 6 reveals, but the western action-adventure title will never be old hat. In so many ways, this is because Red Dead Redemption 2 tells an epic of the American West, highlights varying interpretations of the American Dream, and is not limited by just two entries in the franchise.
In just two games (ignoring the disconnected Red Dead Revolver), Rockstar Games re-creates an entire mythos, and while it most certainly won't return anytime soon, there may still be a future to the franchise. After all, while the ending of the game and the various credit scenes show how the initial Red Dead Redemption got set up, these show so much more. Red Dead Redemption 2 sets up the themes, stories, and ideas that could easily be continued in RDR 3, if that were to ever happen.
American Venom
Dutch Van Der Linde represents the American Dream gone awry—or arguably its truest form—and this is seen clear as day in the final Epilogue mission, American Venom. John and Micah are at each other's throats, both chasing personal dreams that don't necessarily pan out. Their venomous revenge consumes them, and then out walks Dutch, taking center stage as only he can. He's the deciding factor here and simply walks off after shooting Micah and letting John finish him off, practically ignoring Marston on his way out of Red Dead Redemption 2.
Edgar Ross finds Micah's body in the closing credits, leading directly to the events of the first game. However, it's the same theme as before: two different interpretations of the American Dream and freedom butting heads. This idea contributes to John Marston's death in the events of the first game but influenced yet another character: Jack Marston, the Black Sheep of the Van Der Linde Gang. Despite being considered family by everyone, including Arthur Morgan, Jack never truly fit into this gritty world crafted in RDR 2.
This is because, early on, he's this innocent take on the American Dream, the study hard and become anything imaginable mindset. Arthur, John, and Dutch are all hardened before the events in Red Dead Redemption 2, but not Jack. He holds on to this for so long, truly, through his time in Dutch's gang through being kidnapped by the Pinkertons and so on. However, because of his father's death at the hands of Edgar Ross (again, clashing ideology of the American Dream), Jack becomes a killer by the end of the first game.
John and Abigail Marston's Final Conversation
The credits show a happy future for John and Abigail, but as all RDR fans know, that's not the case. The first game starts shortly after this, with John forced to hunt down some of his old friends. John declares it over, they get married, and they speak of a hopeful future overlooking Beecher's Hope. Make no mistake, though, their position is no coincidence. As they look down at their land, their home, and their freedom from debt, they stand on the site where they will be buried (and not much later either).
Considering Jack's the one who buried his mother, considering he too finds himself in this spot contemplating his future, and considering how John Marston's conversation with the Strange Man happened here, this spot is literally a precipice of change in Red Dead Redemption 2. This overlook and one day burial ground is where life and death is metaphorically decided, and this goodwill decision of John leads indirectly to his death. It leads indirectly to Abigail's death, and that's where players take over as Jack.
The Future of Jack Marston and the American Dream
In pursuit of revenge, Jack Marston eventually takes Edgar Ross' life. What happens after cannot be determined, but it's clear that this everpresent theme of the American Dream isn't dead. It's just taken on new form. There's no happy ending for Jack Marston in this, as made clear by Arthur, Dutch, and John before him—there's always one more enemy to be destroyed. After all, the game makes a point to highlight how the agency is still active without Ross, and so someone will eventually replace him. The Age of the Old West comes to an end in just a few years, so those who follow are those who settle and civilize the west, the winning interpretation of the American Dream.
Where this leaves Jack Marston remains unknown, but if there were ever a Red Dead Redemption 3 that explored his story, it would be a literal race against time. This story, as evident by those who came before him and carried the same sentiments he did, does not end well.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is out now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
