10 Bleak Video Game Endings You Can't Escape From
3. We All Know How It All Ends - Red Dead Redemption 2
John’s death in the epilogue of the original Red Dead Redemption is one of the most gut-wrenching moments in gaming history, especially since the game’s main story is completely linear and there is no way you can alter the ending.
That’s why when you discover Red Dead Redemption 2 has two endings, you might assume that perhaps there is a way to avoid a similarly grisly end for the sequel’s protagonist, Arthur Morgan.
Well, think again.
Although there are two endings, neither of them bodes well for Arthur and, ultimately, his gang. In the ending, as Dutch’s people turn on each other, you have the option to either go back to the camp for the heist money or help John escape with his family.
The first choice is meant for low-honor players who’d rather follow greed than help John, and it consequently leads to a hopeless fight in which Arthur dies to Micah.
The second ending is Arthur’s final redemption arc, but it hardly ends on a happy note, either.
Arthur helps John escape, but he also gets shot down by his former friends. And seeing how we’ve all witnessed the rest of the gang’s demise in the first game, even his sacrifice here feels bleak, as if it didn’t amount to anything, after all.