Both of the Red Dead Redemption games are considered to be among the best of their respective console generations. Both games were praised by critics and gamers alike and are among the best-selling video games of all time. Unfortunately, it seems the Red Dead Redemption franchise may have written itself into a corner.
The actual story of the Red Dead Redemption games are among Rockstar's best and primarily revolves around the Van der Linde gang. The second game showed the group's activities and what eventually caused it to break up. The first game almost felt like an epilogue to the second in retrospect and had John Marston hunting down members of his former gang. The ending of the first game implied that his son, Jack Marston, could be the next protagonist but the way the game ends doesn't leave a lot of wiggle room in terms of story.
How the Dying West Theme Limits Possibilities for a Jack Marston Led Red Dead Redemption 3
One of the key themes of the Red Dead Redemption games is that the Old West is dying and it's taking entire lifestyles with it. The second game shows civilization coming in the form of organized crime, the United States Army, the various companies owned by Leviticus Cornwall, and the Pinkerton Detective Agency. It effectively tells the story of this vast and wild country that is gradually getting smaller and rubbing out the ways of life that one could live not even twenty years earlier.
The first game follows in suit. Whether intentional or not, Red Dead Redemption feels like a much smaller game than its sequel with a story that is more compact and intimate. The number of primary antagonists in the game can be counted on one hand and the world overall just has the feel of one that is on the cusp of being completely civilized. By the time the game ends, World War 1 has broken out in Europe, which is well after the point where historians consider the Old West to have ended.
How Jack Marston Limits the Possibilities for Red Dead Redemption 3
Centering a third game around Jack Marston would have a few problems. Red Dead Redemption 3 would likely have the smallest story of the three with the Wild West effectively at its end. That doesn't really give a lot of wiggle room for what the game could be about. It would likely be about Jack Marston being some kind of last outlaw and put a definitive cap on the franchise in terms of the timeline. Regardless of how things turn out for Jack, the Old West is done, and the modern era will have come.
The other problem is the Van der Linde gang itself. The story of Red Dead Redemption is, for better and for worse, the story of that particular gang and people trying to escape it both literally and figuratively. While a story for Red Dead Redemption 3 centered around Jack Marston could capture this spirit, it will be hard to really use the gang again. All the former members of the gang are dead, in prison, or completely off the radar. Trying to continue the story with its final surviving member would be, a stretch at best and has the potential to undo what few happy endings the games offered.
In the end, it's impossible to say what Rockstar has planned for a potential third installment. The company is currently pouring the majority of its resources into the development of Grand Theft Auto 6 and hasn't even confirmed if a third game is in development. In fact, it's likely that Red Dead Redemption 3 won't be released until the 2030s if it's made at all. Regardless, it's clear that the franchise has backed itself into a narrative corner if it wants to continue the story with Jack Marston.
Red Dead Redemption 3 is rumored to be in development.