By Red Dead Redemption 2‘s introductory segment was already rather challenging – trudging through waist-deep snow for extended periods is consistently harsh – but the game’s prologue was initially intended to subject players, and particularly protagonist Arthur Morgan, to even greater hardships.
Rockstar Games co-founder and frequent Grand Theft Auto lead storyteller Dan Houser recently disclosed a different beginning for the open-world cowboy adventure where Arthur Morgan behaves “very, very unpleasantly,” but this version was discarded to prevent making the game’s central character instantly detestable.
“And he showed little compassion towards his occasional lover who’d just given birth. Therefore, it rendered him very, very cruel at the outset, which I found intriguing to toy with, as it would enhance his redemptive journey,” Houser elaborated, while also clarifying that the final portrayal of Arthur was “still somewhat harsh and unpleasant, yet he’s marginally more endearing early in the story. That was the correct choice commercially. It’s preferable this way.”