Red Dead Redemption II was and still is an amazingly groundbreaking game, in my opinion. Our story begins in 1899, taking you across a fictionalized representation of the Western American Frontier. You play as Arthur Morgan, an outlaw in the Dutch Van der Linde gang. The gang is doing their best to escape civilization and return to the old ways of the wild west. Chased at every turn- by government officials, another gang, even nature- our gang is desperate to escape. If you have heard of this game, you probably already know most of this. Some of the songs in this article need explanation, and the last thing I want to do is spoil such a fantastic game for anyone. So please be advised, there will be spoilers ahead! And not small ones either; most of these songs relate to Arthur during the game’s later stages.
Alright, hopefully, that got rid of most of the people who could complain about spoilers. Now it’s time to get into the meat of this article.
5. Keep The Wolves Away – Uncle Lucius
Arthur cares for his family, the gang, more than anything. At a young age, he incorporated into their fray, Dutch practically picking him up off the streets and raising him. He was more than loyal; he dedicated himself entirely to what he was doing and never questioned. Then, things started to turn for the worst. He had put his faith in someone who did not care for his feelings or thoughts. After that point, the gang began to fall apart either by betrayal or false accusations and deaths tied to their crimes. In the end, he did his best to let the others escape the gang unscathed. The wolves he was protecting his family from turned out to have already infiltrated their ranks.
4. Everybody Walkin’ This Land – Paul Cauthen
The unfair world fuels Arthur’s want for change. You, the player, can choose to help anyone and everyone you come across. When you finally visit the city of Saint-Denis in Lemoyne, you meet a man of the cloth. Brother Dorkins. Whether you donate money to his cause of helping the poor or not, Dorkins will ask for Arthur’s assistance in a matter of utmost importance. A nearby fence is holding children as slaves for work. Arthur frees the children, and Dorkin is very grateful and even offers him the donation money as thanks. Doing this mission shows that Arthur indeed does have sympathy for humanity, and this is not the first or last time he will help someone. Arthur can build an entire railroad, help a suffrage movement, and he will make up for his past mistakes as best he can manage if you play your cards correctly. Charles, another member of his gang, needed help aiding the Wapiti Native Americans. Arthur was very close to death when he was asked to help, his sickness taking hold, yet he put everything on the line to help them. Arthur second-guesses himself and puts himself down constantly, but that does not mean the man can’t stand up to help those in need. He knows just how unfair the world can be.
3. Sweet Creature – Harry Styles
Throughout this overlapping and sometimes uplifting story arc, you will be able to visit a woman named Mary Linton. She was Arthur’s former love interest, but their relationship fell through because of Arthur’s attachment to the gang. As it progressed, these missions were one of the most tragic parts of the story (to me). On the outside, he’s a bitter, heartless man. But Arthur has been through enough heartbreak for anyone to realize he is a fully fleshed out, fully realized man. Mary and Arthur spend sweet moments together, and she makes him happy like no other, but when she gave him a chance to run away with her, he didn’t take it. He was so immensely loyal to a ship he couldn’t see was sinking. His vulnerable heart takes the final chapter of the game by storm when he realizes he is dying from tuberculosis and there is no way to stop it. Arthur desperately wants to fix his mistakes.
2. Devil’s Advocate – The Neighborhood
Dutch Van der Linde. A man Arthur considered to be his father after his blood betrayed him. The gang leader, the mastermind behind their plots, and a man overcome by his narcissism. Throughout the game, we watch as Arthur’s loyalty is ripped from him, as he is hurt again and again with no sign of stopping. Death ensues as the gang desperately tries to escape from the world, and the entire time Dutch listens to the devil on his shoulder. He never learns from his past mistakes, always saying, ‘one more, one more time,’ until there is no time left. Even towards the end of the game, Arthur can’t bring himself to lose faith in Dutch. Until everything begins to fall to ruin around him, and he realizes who his true family is.
1. I Gave You All – Mumford and Sons
This song once again reinforces the fact that Arthur was betrayed, wholeheartedly, by a man he loved. But that is not all. Arthur makes the final big sacrifice for his true family, the ones who were always there for him even throughout their problems and vice versa. The last objective of the game, the last mission, is to protect John Marston’s family. A man who he knew he did not treat well. But he knew, even throughout everything, they still had a chance. The others who died along the way did not have a chance, and Arthur viewed himself as dead already. But John, his wife, and his son? They all had a chance. Arthur put the last of his faith into them and made the ultimate sacrifice in the end. Gasping for breath, we watch Arthur’s final sunrise.