Red Dead Redemption 2 is no stranger to mysteries, as Rockstar created a land of wilderness and discovery. Riding through the forests and mountains of this environment can lead players to uncover strange points of interest, offering barely any explanation. Others leave a faint trail of clues that can be traced back by players to find out more details.
For example, the buildings in Red Dead Redemption 2 play a large part in worldbuilding, each one filled with their own character and backstory. Some are average dwellings with nothing much to them, others hint at something of an uncanny nature taking place. A good example of this is a house to the West of Van Horn Trading Post that has boarded up doors and windows. To enter the dwelling, players must climb through one of the first-floor windows, which will take them into a room filled with animal body parts stitched together to form grotesque creations. The mystery of who owns the house and what the dweller was trying to achieve is left up to the player’s imagination, and this is just one of many unsolved mysteries.
Strange Man
Beyond settlements filled with strange things, Red Dead 2 offers mysteries with more storyline behind them. One of the most famous unsolved mysteries is the identity of Strange Man. First featured in RDR1, Strange Man appears as a well-dressed stranger who can’t remember his name in the mission “I Know You.” Marston encounters this man on three separate occasions, each time receiving a task from Strange Man that leads to some sort of moral dilemma. Strange Man also hints that he knows a lot about John’s past, but won’t reveal how he gathered this information.
He reappears again in Red Dead Redemption 2 with more of a supernatural aura, leading some to believe he symbolizes God or the devil. For example, players can find a shack in the Bayou Nwa that contains an unfinished portrait of someone who appears to be Strange Man. Upon revisiting the shack several times, the painting will become more complete. Once the painting is complete, if the player approaches the standing mirror, the reflection of Strange Man will appear behind them. There are also strange messages decorated along the walls that seem to be prophecies of how the storyline will pan out, such as the writing “from the snow to the cave,” a reflection of Arthur’s first and last camp location.
Mythical Creatures
Another mystery that has extended from RDR1 to its successor is the appearance of mythical creatures. First appearing in the Undead Nightmare DLC mission “Sasquatch,” Bigfoot is a creature that shows up again in Red Dead 2 as a skeleton buried beneath a rocky overhang. There have been no official encounters with a live Bigfoot during gameplay, leaving players to speculate on the existence of these giant monkeys. However, as Undead Nightmare took place after the events of RDR2, one would assume that there are live Bigfoots walking around West Elizabeth and New Hanover.
One strange encounter plucked straight from a horror film is the Dracula of Saint Denis, whom Arthur can find on the East side of the city. The vampire’s presence will be given away by a cross on the map, representing a corpse. Arthur can kill the vampire and retrieve bat wings and a legendary trophy from his body. Although there are five messages written on walls across the city that can lead players to the vampire, Rockstar has never explained the role of vampires within the Red Dead universe, leaving players to wander if there is a secret supernatural world to uncover.
Athletics Team
One of the eeriest mysteries of Red Dead Redemption 2 can be found in the misty woods of Tall Trees. When visiting the town of Blackwater, players can read an article about a missing athletics team in the local newspaper, explaining how the group was last seen heading out of the North edge of town for a run. If players venture to the section of forest just under the last “L” of Tall Trees, they can find a ditch filled with the athlete’s bodies. By following clues, they can find a basement belonging to Edmund Lowry Jr., which contains evidence that Lowry was the killer of the athletics team. Although the method of killing remains a mystery, it goes without saying that it must have been thoughtfully planned out to go up against a whole team of athletes.
UFOs
A mystery that Rockstar incorporated into both Red Dead and Grand Theft Auto is the appearance of UFO’s, with no explanation as to why they appear or where they come from. If the player visits an abandoned shack in New Hanover after venturing to a strange rock formation, they have the possibility of seeing a UFO with a green beam fly overhead. Inside the shack that seems to trigger this encounter, there are several skeletons laid on beds and another at the table wearing some sort of cloak. Players are left wondering whether this strange place is a ritual site for extraterrestrial activity, and if so, what kind of civilization these extraterrestrials originate from.
Aside from these well-known mysteries, there are many points of interests across the map that have their own strange secrets, most of which have not been officially explained. These mysteries exist for the purpose of being analyzed, allowing players to form conclusions and share their theories with one another.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
